We've updated our rules regarding the use of alternate accounts. Please read the thread on it here, and post any questions you have. Thanks.

Roleplay StageThis is where the In-Character roleplaying happens. Before you create a thread here, recruit some players in Roleplay Casting. Your very own legend is about to unfold! A world of dreams and adventures awaits! Let's go!

New threads in this forum are to be approved by a moderator before they are displayed.

ATLANTIS AWAKENINGOOC and SU thread can be found here.
Sign-Ups are CLOSED

The lost city of Atlantis, hidden beneath the waves and the annals of history is one written about in nearly every civilization. A place that once held a civilization many years old and incredibly advanced that in one cataclysmic moment was destroyed and sunk beneath the waves. Many people spend their whole lives just looking for evidence of its existence. Yet none have succeeded in uncovering any of its secrets as it lays dormant at the bottom of the ocean.

However, to a select group of the populace, Atlantis is a reality for them. Remnants of the Atlantean civilisation washed up on shores around the world and continued to live with the humans. Bringing with them their vast knowledge, they helped the humans to grow and develop. They managed the building of the Great Pyramids on the Giza Plateau, the construction of the Great Wall of China as well as other great marvels. They brought the human world from its knees to its feet. Even some of the world’s greatest leaders were Atlantean. They brought a new era for Human civilisation.

Recent archaeological digs in Egypt have uncovered evidence of the Atlanteans presence within the human community. Forced to come out of the closet, very few of the remaining families of true Atlanteans that still retain their ancestry have made their presence known. Possessing godly powers, these Atlanteans propose a bright new future as they begin to shed further light on their ancient civilisation. Hidden in the populace, Atlantean descendants who have forgotten their ancestry lie dormant; their own past waiting to be revealed to them.

In the midst of this discovery, a group come to light calling themselves the ‘Atlantean Royal Family’. In a single press release, they talk about the history of the Atlantean people and how they still live within Humans today. Raising a brilliant crystal in the air, they announce the awakening of the Atlantean race as across the world, people begin to develop abilities. From the public rise a new society known as the Atlantean Unification Project, who wish to unite Atlanteans as a single race. With these two groups at the vanguard, a new era for human and Atlantean kind beckons.

The Story So Far...

It has been two weeks since the Atlanteans revealed themselves and people across the globe people are beginning to realise the strange and mysterious manifest within them.

The final day of October is drawing to a close as Atlanteans across the globe finish registering and return home. For some though, the opportunity to delve further into their abilities opens up as two major factions, the Atlantean Unification Project and the Atlantean Royal Family, begin their recruitment of these special individuals. Meanwhile, the mysterious Syndicate and the eccentric man known only as the Librarian, collect a few Atlanteans themselves for whatever hidden agendas they have planned.

A week has passed since the newly developed Atlanteans have accepted their initiation into one of the three major Atlantean groups. After a week of training, everyone is drawn to Paris as a renegade Atlantean devastates the beautiful City of Lights with his meteorites from space. below him, his cohort band sing along to the destruction. Their reason for doing this is yet to be known, but everyone important has gathered as battle lines are drawn and relationships are being put to the test.

Following the unfortunate events in Paris, people have returned to their bases of operations, some even joining other sides. But all is not well for each side has their secrets they are trying to keep hidden. As the night draws to a close, a secret group of soldiers invades the Atlantean Royal Mansion, kidnapping nearly two-thirds of the students there. Flustered, the ARF tries to find out who is responsible while some of their remaining students escape to hunt down the captors. Meanwhile, the Syndicate and AUP have already boarded the ship, both groups engaging in a stealth rescue mission. Will the captives be rescued in time or will they become captives themselves?

With everyone rescued, each faction returns to its headquarters to rest up for the coming days ahead. Things seem far from settling down, and just who is this mysterious 'Queen' and what does she want? Only time will tell as things begin to heat up (or cool down in Nate's case). Not to mention the AUP's leader, Emilio Bernot, revealing their plans to visit 'New Atlantis'. Could this be the final touches to the revival of the Atlantean race?

The next day dawns and already things have begun to return to what was considered normality at the ARF Mansion. A surprise visit from the Librarian has Leo hooked as James and Nate are offered the opportunity to step up. Meanwhile, the AUP touchdown in New Atlantis and begin to get a feel for their new 'sanctuary'. But not all is peaceful in the coastal Swedish town... As for the Syndicate, it's back to the usual day to day regime of training, with Wyatt getting not only new team mates, but also a weapons upgrade and lesson. Things may seem peaceful at the moment, but elsewhere a storm is brewing on the horizon...

It's been a busy couple of days for the Atlanteans and things don't seem to be slowing down. After the AUP recruits capture a rogue, kleptomaniac Atlantean in Lindholm, they soon find themselves jet-setting to Egypt where the mystery of Pandora's Box awaits. What untold secrets lurk in the bottom of this locked box? Meanwhile the Syndicate spend a day out and about after days of training and a morning mission concluding in a hostile takeover of another banking firm. What are the devious Syndicate planning? Even James is feeling the pressure when the Renegades begin to draw him deeper into the folds of their makeshift organisation as they teach him to not only become his element, but eventually to achieve God Mode. Who will stop the unstoppable? Finally the ARF recruits find themselves on edge; fearing another hostile attack on the mansion. Will they ever truly be able to feel safe in the Atlantean Mansion? As the strings of fate begin to weave together, it is only a matter of time before things soon get out of hand...

Dawn rises on the 21st of November, but not without some big revelations. Nine days earlier and the AUP safely retrieve Pandora's box at the bequest of the Librarian. Opening it up, they find a young girl trapped in a large block of Atlantite. Carving her out, the girl gravitates to Delta who is apparently a descendant of Pandora. Known as Elpis, the girl speaks a tongue only known to select few and asks to be kept safe. On the other side of the English Channel, the Syndicate rescue Jeremy after having a day out in town. Meanwhile several ARF students band together to form the Royal Guard. With a month left until a predestined big event, what will become of our Atlantean characters?

With the dusking of the 21st came the turning point for our Atlantean Heroes and Heroines. Once everyone was asleep, an Atlantean by the name of Lucifer brought all those to a mystical dreamscape within the mind of the Oracle. There, the Oracle spoke of a prophecy outlining their individual fates and proclaimed them to be World Changers and Harbingers of Light. With the prophecy spoke, Lucifer then lead them on to something bigger; The Akashic Records or more commonly known as the Library of Souls. Within each wing of the library the characters each faced not only their pasts but also a Lemurian guide; a mystical being from a pre-Atlantean era. As each character wakes from their informative slumber the Renegades roll into action and begin their assaults on Budapest and the Vatican. Things are not looking promising for the coming future.

After a rather hectic and busy month where organisations have risen and fallen, people killed and abilities taken, where the world slowly slips into chaos, our characters have finally made it to the fated final day. James Hazen, Delta Mayor, Oakley North, Wyatt Cale, Nathaniel Calaway and Thayne Clarke have been in a meteor storm, traveled through time, and are currently witnesses to a zombie outbreak. But all these events were leading up to one final conflict: the fated battle on the 21st December, 2012 where one shall be named Harbinger of the Light and another the World Changer. Win, lose or draw, they have all made it this far and the coming battle will be a tough one. Who will win? Only time will tell.

(GM NOTE: I am so proud of where we have gotten. There was a time where I thought Atlantis may never finish, but it was the collective support of you guys that have made this final a reality. It's been truly amazing RPing with such talented people and we have all grown since the beginning of this RP. May the light of the Universe shine brightly upon you all. ~revlis out.)

Rules

Follow all PokéCommunity and Roleplay Corner rules.

This roleplay is rated M for Mature, so the overuse of course language or sexual references is forbidden.

Activity is essential. While this roleplay is not a fast moving one, becoming inactive for an extended period of time is intolerable.

Godmodding, powerplaying, bunnying and being overly-powerful is strictly forbidden without permission.

No SPAM and going off-topic. Please keep all OOC in the OOC thread.

Please, be reasonable.

Myself and Skymin are both GMs, so our word means law.

Background Information

The Atlantean Royal Family

Spoiler:

The oldest of the organisations, the ARF dates back to the founding and consolidation of Atlantis as an empire. Run as somewhat of a Democracy, it is led by the heads of the five royal houses of Atlantis; each encompassing a different aspect. They currently inhabit the Atlantean Mansion in Boston, England.

André Cabrillo – Nikolaiviertel, Berlin, Germany

Late Afternoon, October 23rd, 2012

I had never liked my sister's decision to reveal our true nature to the world. I had always liked to think that we were super heroes that did good deeds behind masks. That the people loved us without knowing who we really were. Like any comic book super hero, as soon as the public know what your face really looks like, your loved ones get hurt and the world gets nasty. I had told my sister how I felt about this, but because I wasn't part of 'the five', my voice went unheard. Plus, my biological brother would never listen to what I said. According to him, I was just 'a kid'.

I'd show him. I knew I was destined for such greater things. I could show him that I was something.

As I wandered the streets of Berlin, glancing at the map on my phone every thirty seconds, I could see the faces of my Atlantean brothers and sisters, the five faces of the Royal Family, plastered along the fences and brick walls. A few people had honoured the Atlantean race, creating amazing posters that described us as saviours and heroes and some had scorned us, treating us as if we had created a new plague that had infected and cursed those it had touched. I seemed to notice the awful ones more, depicting death and destruction. I was going to prove them wrong. Today, I was going to bring peace to the mortals and the Atlanteans.

I was going to be a hero.

I remembered, this was how my brothers and sisters saw themselves when the leadership was thrust onto them. I watched my brother hone his powers and use them for good. He wasn't just a hero to the world, he was my hero. And now, he had pulled off his mask and thrown his suit away. I was glad the world acknowledged us but I hated them for hating us. Honestly, we were far superior to mortals but they treated us like aliens. If only they knew all that we had done for them.

Everything had happened so fast. It had only been six days since we had been revealed. When the mortals had discovered the Atlantean Crystals in Egypt, I thought that for sure we would try and pull out the time we had for as long as possible. My brother had said the world was not ready for us, but despite this, River raised her Crystal and revealed us and now with the Oracle and her prophercy guiding our every step, we could never go back.

I had finally found this coffee shop I had been searching for; Nikolaiviertel it was called. It was cosy-ish and near the river and and such a cool place for a rendezvous point. I pushed my way through the small groups of people and sat down at table 5, just like I had been told. A few moments later, another man, sporting a hoodie which covered his entire face, joined me. I looked up to meet his eyes and realised why his hoodie was shadowing his face like it did; his Atlantean tattoo winded and weaved in spirals across his face. I smiled and placed my hands on the table, trying to appear social. I did wish he would take off his hoodie; it seemed awful suspicious, even to a child because of the recent events.

"André Cabrillo, I presume. It's a pleasure to meet you," he smirked.

"Are you Pietr Tillmann," I asked, politely shaking my head to the incoming waiter. He spoke as if he had known me before, though I had never seen his face before. I tried not to seem suspicious as it felt rude if I insulted the man even a little.

"I apologise for the choice of location, but this is my favourite café,” he accent was quite thick, but his English was clean and understandable. "I’m glad you came on such short notice."

"No, I don't mind at all. I couldn’t pass up an opportunity to speak with you, Mr. Tillmann, after all you had explained," I looked away from his face for a second to quickly check the surroundings. As I thought, the hood that Tillmann was wearing had attracted some attention. A boy from a family of four was pointing at our table. Though if he took it off, it would probably worsen the situation. "I only wish that you can accept my offer. It would be of great benefit to the both of us and to the world."

A girl stood in the corner, staring intently at us. I recognised her almost immediately. I had seen her face in photos and my brother had told me about her a few times. This was not a good thing. It only meant that... was something bad going to happen? I looked back to Tillmann to find him smirking again.

"I’m going to have to say no, Mr. Cabrillo. Your plans are childish and naive and you can never hope for this kind of peace. You are a fool for not listening to your brothers and sisters," he stood up, knocking over his chair and whipping his hood off. Many people gasped and pointed, obviously having seen the media.

"B-but," Tillman wasted no time, grabbing me by the collar and before I could even try to pull him off, he picked me up and held me up for the cafe to see. There were screams and yells in German as Tillman reached into my shirt with his other arm, finding my necklace and snapping it off. My Crystal!! Without it, I couldn't even attempt to control my power. I felt my skin prickle and my hair standing on its end, though Tillman paid this no attention. His tattoo had started to glow red and I could feel his body emitting heat.

"This will surely send a message to your so-called family."

"Please!" I choked, grabbing at his hands as they grew hotter, my skin burning for so many reasons. But my transformation was not fast enough for such an experienced Atlantean. "Please don't do this!"

"This is the end. Goodbye."

And within seconds, the café erupted in flames and a large chunk of Berlin was reduced to rubble.

.

DAY 1

Oakley North – Her Father’s House, London, England

Noon, October 31st, 2012

"Oakley! It’s on the news again!"

"Yes, okay! Hang on," Oakley got up from her bed, dragging her arm behind her. She didn’t mean for the armour to travel up her arm so high. She had been ‘practising’ and by practising it meant she was sitting in her room, cross legged on her bed, trying to control her breathing. Two weeks of confinement and the ability of having a hand with fingers too big to type on a keyboard had taught her that her power relied on her heart beat. A slower heart beat meant the armour receded. A faster heartbeat meant it grew. And the faster it grew, the more it distorted the armour was and the more it hurt. She hadn’t learned much else, only which being a panicky teenager was not healthy for her. Unfortunately, that’s what she was. And it sucked.

She fell into her favourite chair, trying her best not to rip it with her right arm. Her father pointed at the television and turned the volume up as the new reporter gestured behind her.

"Evidence was found today that the cause of the Berlin Explosion was the work of Atlanteans. André Cabrillo, brother of Leo Cabrillo, member of the Atlantean Royal Family, was suspected to be the cause of the explosion as survivors claimed to have seen the 20 year old in the streets on Berlin that day as well as physical DNA evidence at the heart of the chaos. Other members of the Royal Family have made no comments towards his disappearance but together with the United Nations have rushed an international bill, calling all Atlanteans to register themselves and their abilities with the local Atlantean Relief Centres in all capital cities. Anybody now caught using Atlantean Abilities without being registered or carrying a registration card will face detainment.

"More on this story soon..."

"It’s all very interesting, isn’t it?" Oakley’s father gave her a weak smile and a small laugh. She returned the smile, sinking into her chair. Her father had tried to help her feel better over the past two weeks about herself but he knew as well as she did that she wouldn’t be able to continue with anything she had planned. No more Oxford, like she had planned. No more future. Just an enormous metal arm. "Are you going to go?"

"I have to, don’t I?" She hated to think if she didn’t. What was the Atlantean version of the police like? Could they fire electricity from their fingers or maybe turn you into stone?

"I’ll come with you if you like."

"No, it’s okay. I’ll do it. I’ll… go," she looked around for her coat and her sling. "I’ll go right now."

"Are you sure that’s a good idea?" Her father frowned a little at her. No doubt he was recalling what had happened last night. Oakley had found her brother’s old things and started to cry. It took three hours to get the armour back down to normal.

"I’ll be okay."

* * *

"What's your power?"

"What?"

"I said, what's your power?"

"I... Why?" Oakley frowned at the stranger behind her in line. He was older than she was, probably 23 or 24, though it confused her why he was curious. As soon as Oakley had grabbed her coat and rewrapped her arm back, she had left for the bus station. The closest one of these 'Atlantean Relief Centres' was the London one, which happened to be one of the most busiest places she had ever been to. People were everywhere, lining up in lines to prove their Atlantean existence. Some were lead to rooms, some were turned away. She turned back to the man, who gave out a cheesy grin.

"I'll tell you mine if you tell me yours. Mine is super bad ass," he gave her cast a sheepish look. Oakley frowned and shook her head. Despite what she told her father, she began to trust herself even less. She didn't want another accident.

"Whatever!" he laughed again. "Mine is so awesome! Just watch!" He held his breath and then exhaled as his face turned red. Then, he clapped his hands and smiled back at her. With no difference whatsoever. "See?"

"Next!" Oakley spun around as it was her turn, blinking at herself. He glowed? What? She approached two guards, police officers maybe, who quickly jabbed her left arm with a needle. She gasped and as they pulled it out, a small bump appeared, which then was covered over with a growth of armour. With a nod, they let her through, hearing a "what, that metal stuff on her arm! That's your power?! Lame!" behind her from the guy. She was lead to a room with several desks, doctors behind them and asking questions to people at desks. Oakley was pushed to a desk, where a very tired looking lady looked over her glasses and spoke with the most monotonous voice.

"Name?"

"Oakley North."

"And what's your ability, Oakley?" The doctor leaned her head on her shoulder and her eyelids drooped. Was she bored? Tired? Both? Oakley inhaled then pulled off the cast, revealing the armour plates. The doctor immediately sat up, rubbed her eyes then began to jot notes. She asked questions and Oakley answered them as shortly as possible. When they were done, Oakley wrapped her arm back up, was handed a slip of paper and motioned to another door. This one was to a large waiting room, full of people. She pulled a face and carefully picked a spot on the ground. One with the least amount of dirt and people. She gave a sigh and sat down. She felt surprisingly at peace, with all her freakish brethren surrounding her, but uncomfortable enough to avoid anyone. Still, she was not up for unwrapping her arm for any kind of random person yet.

Agnes Johansson - Stockholm, Sweden

October in Sweden is not overly nice. The weather is windy or rainy most days, and sometimes both at the same time. But today, yellow rays of sunlight actually shone through the thick mattress of clouds that hat otherwise decided to camp indefinitely above the capital city. A stream of red swept through the air over a street all of a sudden, a fluttering trail of one meter textile behind a larger piece of brightly blue textile. That was at least what it looked like to most of the onlookers.

To Agnes, this was more thrilling than most things she had done in life. She wasn't completely sure that it was a smart thing to do, but she was simply too tired to think and act wisely any longer. She had been hiding for a week, her half-brother being the only other human being who had known about her real identity. And then the news came on TV, in papers and everywhere. An explosion in Berlin, caused by Atlanteans. Everyone now had to register at an Atlantean Relief Centre which was set up in the capitals all around the world. Register or face the consequences. Ah, consequences...

Another day, Agnes might have done something even more reckless. She might have opened up her window in the middle of the night and just flown out. Soared high above all the buildings and just left... Escaped. But this day she had met Carl upon exiting her room filled with thoughts like that, just after waking up. He had somehow sensed what she was thinking of doing. And he had talked her out of it.

She smiled, where she flew roughly three meters above the pavement, head first and feet last with the red scarf fluttering in the air behind her blue trenchcoat. Everyone who saw her gasped and stepped out of the way, even though she was flying above their heads. It took a bit of an effort for her, and all of her focus, to not suddenly fall down and accidentally kick someone in the head. She had not nearly full control over this flying thing yet.

But now, everyone knew. Everyone who was walking the busy streets of Stockholm this morning could clearly see her. A flying Atlantean. The new age was here, and she would be at its front lines. By god, she would.

Her smile grew wider as she arrived at the library that they had closed down and refashioned overnight into the Atlantean Relief Centre of Stockholm. Agnes tried to land on the tiny plaza in front of it, near a fountain. The streets around the centre were filled with people walking slower just to try and get a look at some of the rumored powers that could be here. Now they got to watch how Agnes misjudged her landing procedure and ended up landing with her belly on the ledge around the fountain, hands down into the water and the tips of her two braids dipped as well. No one laughed as she got up, though. They just kept staring. Agnes felt irritation but stared back valiantly and made a hasty motion with her arm just to intimidate them. It worked; the closest onlookers almost jumped and then swiftly made their way away from the plaza.

Agnes couldn't help giggling a little at that, but then she saw someone approach her in the corner of her eye. A big man in security clothing. "Come with me, fröken," he said in Swedish. "Don't resist."

"Wouldn't dream of it!" Agnes said, holding her hands up innocently. She was escorted inside the library by the untalkative security man who left her in a line of people in the lobby. Glancing forward, Agnes tried to study the other supposed Atlanteans there. They didn't look odd at all. Just like normal humans. Then again... so did she. Well, relatively so.

Nathaniel Calaway- Somewhere in London, England.
October 31st, 2012

"Nate! Nate! You gotta wake up mate!" A voice burst through a door, tearing it off its hinges.

"Bill, leave me alone…I need some sleep" Nathaniel groaned, rolling in his bed pulling the covers over his head. It didn't help that Bill called Nathaniel by a nickname that he was not too fond of to begin with. Nicolas was the first to call him by that name and his English roommates just decided to call him that too once they caught wind of it. It didn't help that it rhymed with "mate" which Bill loved to say.

"Come on, man. It's getting late. We have to go to class soon anyway," Bill pouted with concern. "Trust me, getting up for this is worth it," he continued as he knew Nathaniel would say something along the lines of 'Class isn't for a while'. Nathaniel rolled around to face Bill with a blank expression, overwhelmingly cold expression. "I'll take that as you'll get up," Bill chuckled in victory.

Nathaniel emerged from his dark room, still in his pajamas, groggy and tired. He was rubbing his eyes still as the conscious world was becoming gradually more clear to him. His roommates, Bill (the rude awakener and his best friend here), Charlie (Bill's friend from high school) and Arthur (the only one more reclusive than Nathaniel himself) huddled together around the small television that Nicolas bought Nathaniel for his room abroad. While small, it still got job done and fortunately Bill and Charlie pooled money together to get basic cable or the English equivalent to such a thing. Nathaniel didn't catch the details, nor did he care for them. As Nathaniel grew closer to the television and his consciousness restored, a news report rung through his ears.

"Evidence was found today that the cause of the Berlin Explosion was the work of Atlanteans. André Cabrillo, brother of Leo Cabrillo, member of the Atlantean Royal Family, was suspected to be the cause of the explosion as survivors claimed to have seen the 20 year old in the streets on Berlin that day as well as physical DNA evidence at the heart of the chaos. Other members of the Royal Family have made no comments towards his disappearance but together with the United Nations have rushed an international bill, calling all Atlanteans to register themselves and their abilities with the local Atlantean Relief Centres in all capital cities. Anybody now caught using Atlantean Abilities without being registered or carrying a registration card will face detainment.

"More on this story soon..."

Nathaniel was in a temporary state of shock. He had, since his abilities manifested recently, he could get anyway not having to worry about getting caught. However, now everything became just a little more difficult, if only because Nathaniel's powers were not in complete control.

"Pretty crazy stuff eh?" Bill said to his roommates.

"You can say that again," Charlie replied, letting the news report run in the background as he rose from the small couch and stretched, releasing a huge yawn. Probably slept there again, Nathaniel thought. Everyone turned to Arthur for his response to the news report, but he just grunted and went back into his room. They turned to Nathaniel, who was still processing his thoughts.

"You okay, Nate?" They both asked simultaneously.

"Oh, yes. I'm fine," Nathaniel said with a half hearted laugh. "You didn't see that everyday."

"It's nothing to worry about. It's just…the world responding to a potential threat. I am sure it will blow over soon and everything will go back to normal." Nathaniel assured his friends. "No sense in over thinking something like it."

He returned to his room and slammed the door shut and fell into his chair. His desk was covered in books, papers, organized in small piles. Many of them were unrelated to one another, but there was one trend: history, myths and ancient texts. After the Atlanteans revealed themselves, Nathaniel took an invested interest in them. It had only been a few weeks (he lost track of in between everything), but nevertheless Nathaniel got caught up in the whole "being from Atlantis" concept. It is not everyday you learn grandma and grandpa were probably mermaids or something. He wanted to learn about his heritage, but sadly he did not find as much as he had hoped for. Mostly he found legends, stories and things that just didn't add up. Nathaniel thought he was only looking in the wrong place, but this wasn't a time to dwell on his lack of findings. It was a time to just deal with the facts. He is an Atlantean and he had to answer the summons and meet more members of his kind. Nathaniel could only hope the deep fears he locked deep within his head were nothing more than unfounded conspiracy theories.

He gathered his things, clothes and some paperwork and stepped out of his room. Bill and Charlie were cooking up some breakfast, and as usual Arthur's room was locked to all. He snuck into the bathroom and washed up, in a daze, doing everything without much thought. The only thing awoke up from his daze was when Nathaniel realized he froze the water coming out of the shower head, likely breaking another one. That would be his cue to step out and hope no one noticed the broken shower (again). Putting on his regular outfit (accessories and all), halfway soaked with his hair still wet, Nathaniel stepped out of the bathroom. He packed his bag with a few necessities but curiously left a few stapled papers on the table. He made his way to the closet beside the door and put on his favorite black and red racing jacket, almost forgetting his black racing helmet with the design of his favorite game painted on the sides and back. "Taking the bike out?" Bill's voice said in the distance. "You do remember we got class in a bit right?"

"Yeah," Nathaniel muttered. "I don't think I am going to make it today. Can you give my professors the papers on the table for me?"

"Think you will be home tonight?" Charlie interrupted the little moment. "I was going to cook up something for supper tonight. Its for a class. I need to cook up an original dish and survey it. I was hoping you'd help, You are the only one honest enough to tell me if it is terrible or not. Bill's too nice and Arthur never talks."

"Sure, no promises though," Nathaniel said with a half wave, closing the door gently on his way out. Hating elevators, Nathaniel walked down the stairs into the lower levels of the parking garage. He was the only one with any sort of vehicle, so by default he got to keep the parking spot all to himself. Mounting his motorcycle, Nathaniel secured his bag, put on his gloves and equipped his helmet before racing off in typical egotistical motorcycle fashion. Rarely one to observe traffic laws, Nathaniel raced through the crowded streets of London only respecting the foreign laws when he noticed a police officer in the vicinity. He got pulled once before, barely able to walk away with a warning. He took a number of shortcuts through some alleys on his way to the Atlantean Centre. He arrived later than he wanted to however, unable to bypass the influx of vehicles and people at the centre. It seemed many people saw the news report and wanted to sign up for the register card as to avoid any sort of unsightly incidents. Or a bunch of retarded teenagers thought it would be a good story to show at the centre and troll the officials. Troll people with super powers, yeah…nice one morons.

Upon entering the building, he was directed a painfully long line. It seemed to make no progress in the hour or so that he remained on the line, though he witnessed a number of people be rejected. Why anyone would want to pose as an Atlantean was beyond Nathaniel's comprehension. The only reasonable explanation would be gain insight into the society itself. Not that would do much.

After some time, it was his turn. A menacing guard and his close friend, stabbed Nathaniel in the arm with some sort of needle (luckily he took his jacket off a while back when he entered the building) leaving a bump in its wake. He was lead through the doors and ended up in a room with a few doctors to undergo further tests. It seemed whatever solution was in the needle was a preliminary round. Now it was time for the real test. Nathaniel sat a desk and stared his doctor waiting for the next step.

"Name?" the doctor asked, apathetic at the whole situation. Nathaniel was already getting a bad feeling about it. The needle from earlier didn't help.

"Nathaniel Calaway." The two corresponded briefly, taking down Nathaniel's information. The minor details that Nathaniel said offhand with little concern for the repercussions. He had to give him the information even if he didn't want or face punishment later.

"And what can you do, Mr. Calaway?" The doctor asked, trying his best to sound polite and interested. Clearly this doctor got the boring ones. It was this time that Nathaniel reached a crossroads. He could explain his power in a polite manner or he could have a bit of fun.

"Is that coffee?" Nathaniel asked the doctor, pointing to his mug.

"Um…yes?" The doctor said, confused and annoyed as he peered into Nathaniel's blue eyes from behind his glasses. Undoubtedly, the doctor probably thought that his patient had the ability of Coffee Manipulation, which would be deadly to any Starbucks fan.

Nathaniel placed a single finger on his mug and watched as the mug instantly froze. "Hope you enjoy iced coffee."

Eyes wide, the doctor stumbled over his words and his once highly prized mug shattered as it collided with the ground: "Um….oh yes. Very interesting, Mr. Calaway. T-take this paper and see the guard for your next batch of instructions. N-next!"

With a forced smile, Nathaniel took the slip of paper and rose from his seat, putting his jacket back on and proceeded to follow the doctor's instructions as he was lead to a crowded room full of other Atlanteans. The whole experience was a bit surreal and strange. He couldn't really believe it was happening. Of course, he had felt shades of another time…The Holocaust to be precise in which Jews were round up by the Nazis to be sent to camps. Hopefully this was not the underlying plot of these centers.

He looked for a spot to rest, the stress getting to him a bit. The room was crowded, which didn't help things at all for a person who grew sick of people rather easily. Nathaniel maneuvered around the room until he found a young girl sitting by herself, alone with a sling, on the cold ground. Couldn't get much more depressing than that. Nathaniel walked over to her, throwing his jacket over her shoulders as he plopped next to her.

"This whole thing is a bit crazy isn't it?" Nathaniel said to her, stirring up conversation. "Name's Nathaniel. You could call me 'Nate' if you want. Everyone seems to. What do they call you?"

Wyatt Cale – Lancaster, Lancashire, England

Wednesday, October 31st, 2012

Breathing in through his nose, Wyatt brought the bow string past his front shoulder until it grew taunt and tight; refusing to stretch further. In his head he turned the vanilla business card over and over watching the information disappear then reappear within one full rotation. With arrow notched and ready, he let out the breath slowly, feeling his lungs deflate but not letting go of the arrow just yet. In his mind’s eye he focused on the information embossed onto the card:

Daniel Cain
Directive

With all the air escaping into the chill afternoon breeze, he released the taunt string, watching as the arrow sailed through the air in an arc; striking the target in the distance a few centimetres below the bullseye. The crowd erupted into an orchestra of clapping and cheering as his third and final arrow saw him taking second in the National Archery Championships. He replaced the bow on the table behind him, picking up the thin wired framed glasses that allowed him to see the table more clearly. His heart beat faster as the cheering reached a crescendo and he smirked as his flatmates rose from their seats, screaming his name.

Now alone in his room, silver medal resting warmly against his chest, Wyatt again rotated the business card between his fingers, watching the name, title and number being replaced by a simple logo with a signal word written beneath. Just under two weeks ago while trialling for Nationals, a suited man approached him under the guise of some firm called the ‘Syndicate’, looking at funding him for future championships. Once alone, the man began talking to Wyatt about a fairy-tale civilization that sunk beneath the waves thousands of years ago and mysterious people with the ability to fly or hurl boulders. Wyatt cast him off as an absolute nutter, still accepting the business card the man put into his hands which he could not find the heart to throw away. Somehow it seemed important and that he would need it. What was a ‘Directive’ anyway? It seemed utterly ridiculous for someone to make a mistake on a business card, so the title must have been real or the card itself fake.

Picking up his cellphone from amongst the clutter on the bedside table, he dialled the number from the business card, putting the receiver to his ear, listening to the call ring through. After three rings it clicked and the same deep voice crackled into the ear piece that had spoken to him little over a week ago.

Daniel Cain speaking, yes Wyatt?”

Wyatt stopped in his tracks, obviously the man had some sort of caller ID on his phone that must have flashed up his name when he called, but the fact he had addressed him by name in the first instance scared him a little.

”Uh, Mr. Cain, yeah, it’s Wyatt speaking, well, I want to take you up on your offer.”
“Alright then, how soon can you be picked up?”
“What do you mean? What for?”
“We’ll need you to come in so we can have a better look at you.”
“That sounds quite creepy, I’m not too sure I want to do this now.”
“If you want to control this, then I suggest you come in. We’ll have someone come pick you up in soon.”

Wyatt was speechless as the phone clicked and the call ended. Sure, he wanted to control this ability of his but he was under the impression that they would help him outside of work and practice, not taking off to somewhere else.

A knock at the door turned into Wyatt’s flatmate bursting in to his room, launching herself onto him and giving him a big hug.

“I’m sorry I couldn’t come, my boss wouldn’t let me take the day off; that slave-driving, perverted scum…” Anastasia mumbled into Wyatt’s shoulder as she embraced him. Still quite stunned from the previous conversation with Daniel Cain, Wyatt only half-heartedly returned the embrace.

“Silver, right,” she played with the medal that hung around Wyatt’s neck, “Varsity Nationals, and you take second place,”

“It’s nothing big, only second place,” he replied rather nonchalantly.

“Nothing big? Out of the entire British Empire, you are the second best Archer!”
“For Varsity level…”

“Hurry up and get changed,” Anastasia rose from his lap, heading for the door; “Mark and Travis are going to pick us up in roughly ten minutes.”

Wyatt let out a deep sigh before resting his head against the wall, more than anything he wanted to just go to sleep, exhausted and slightly sunburnt from the day, but Anastasia insisted that they go out to celebrate. He jumped as, out of the corner of his eye, a boy about two or three years younger than himself appeared on top of his desk chair.

“Who the hell are you?” Wyatt called as he rolled over the bed, dropping to the floor and bringing up the Bo Staff hidden beneath his bed.

“Woah, settle down, eh?” The kid spoke as he wiped sweat from his brow, Wyatt catching a glimpse of a strange watch that took up half the kid’s forearm.

“Why are you in my room? How’d you get in here?”

“Oh, sorry for scaring ya, the name’s Jeremy, Jeremy Fisher. I was sent by Mr. Cain to retrieve you.”

“Uh, well I have plans, so you’re going back without me. Wasn’t he going to send a car instead?”

“I’m the envoy, if I’m not mistaken, we’re related.” Before Wyatt could even ask how Jeremy lifted up his shirt, revealing his ribcage detailed with thin black lines and when he swivelled around, Wyatt could see the black lines joining at his spine.

Wyatt stared at the marks, subconsciously reaching around and rubbing the mark on the back of his neck that had appeared mysteriously two weeks ago. Ever since then, Ava had avoided him around university, even to the point of not showing up to practices. On the odd occasion she did, she would look at him out of the corner of her eye and try to avoid his gaze. Whatever was going on with her, he knew it had to do with his tattoo.

Taking a quick glance at his watch, Jeremy stretched his hand out to Wyatt, “we’ve got limited time, are ya coming or not?”

The breeze brushed passed Delta; she wished that somehow she had been granted the ability to manipulate time. Despite her life never being ideal this isn’t what she expected to happen to her, to become a part of another race. She had yet to share this life altering news with anyone, well, that hadn’t meant that she hadn’t come close to it. Nathan, her grandma’s gardener, had found her passed out on the floor yet she still denied being this race. It was hard enough growing up African-American in Poland, and now she had another identity forced upon her, she wasn’t ready for it. Somehow, someway she’d find a way to separate her from this newly founded identity, but for now Delta embraced it like hug she had received from Nathan before she left for the capital, Warsaw, perhaps she’d find answers there. The explosion in Germany had made major news in Poland, after all that was her next-door neighbor, what if they targeted Poland next? Delta breathed in deeply in an attempt to calm herself from the stress that all this had caused her.

From the first moment the news had declared that she had to register herself on the freak list Delta had decided against it. She wasn’t willing to be subjected to this type of treatment and if she had to risk her own safety then that’s exactly what she was going to do. The sky she stared was marked beautifully with clouds, its light blue color highlighted by the sun’s rays. Her fingers wiggled in her dark gloves, the leather material felt right against her skin. If only those around her knew what lay beneath them, burned into her skin. Delta stood at the top of the steps, the breeze continued as she marched down while she shielded her eyes from the sun's reflection. She sauntered into the Warszawa’s airport, or as the non-Polish called the capital, Warsaw. With every step she took her more and more people turned to stare in her direction, this is what a typical day felt like.

Yet today Delta didn’t mind the stares because soon enough they would all know her face when she achieved her rather ambitious goal. Unfortunately it was still a little premature and she was a little too alone to go through with it. As soon as she stepped outside her leather jacket flapped in the wind, she was surprised that with the amount of tall buildings that the wind had even managed to reach her. Her eyes locked onto her target, Atlantean Relief Centre, she needed to know what the fuss was about even though she had already decided to not to register. Luckily her ability hadn’t been something that altered her physical appearance so perhaps she could play off being a human. Delta had already begun alienating herself from the human race and it had only been a week or two since the big reveal. Her impressive five-inch heels stopped clicking on the concrete paved roads as she reached the doors of the Centre and surprisingly they weren’t automatic, how retro. She clasped a single hand onto the keys that hung from her black lanyard before she swung open the door.

The inside had a hospital vibe to it, the tiles were checkered white and black and a secretary behind a glass window was straight ahead. There was an alternative route on her; it was a hallway that trailed off diagonally. If somehow Delta was able to avoid the lines that seemed never ending she might have a chance to see what was down there. A plan should’ve been made before she stepped into the building but that wasn’t Delta’s style, hers was a bit more reckless. Two, what she assumed, guards each stood in front of steel doors that were to the left and right of the secretary's space. She watched them as they ushered her people into the doors to brand them with a label that they’d never be able to wash away. These people were weak and she wanted nothing to do with them but she was still curious what was to happen to them once they went behind those doors. Delta slid through the lines toward the hallway but was stopped by a man in a tank top, board shorts, and flip-flops.

“Name’s Tomasz, but you can call me Tom,” He smiled brightly at Delta, but he reminded her of a friend who once ate the bugs in his food instead of throwing it away, both disgusting. “What’s your ability, pretty lady?”

“To rid guys of what they use to think,” Tom raised an eyebrow at her statement before he noticed the knife she held leveled at his genitalia and subsequently threw up his hands.

“I like my babes feisty!”

She felt his eyes still on her as she made her way into the hallway. Delta let herself into the nearest door that appeared on her right side after about forty steps. The lights switched themselves on; she scoffed as they had automatic lights but not automatic doors. A wooden desk was her first target as she searched through the contents and came up empty. Muffled voices were present outside the door, which caused Delta to swear before she concentrated on her arms to shift. The door flew open; a guard entered the room and reached for his walkie-talkie but paused.

“You have five seconds to tell me what you’re doing in this room,” He spoke rapidly in Polish, luckily during the thirteen years she lived here she learned the language. His tone was serious, she wasn’t getting out of this without a fight but first she needed a reasonable excuse.

“I was directed over here, am I not supposed to be here?” Delta swayed back and forth while she had her hands shoved in her pockets, she just hoped he bought her act.

“Alright, I’ll administer the first test, take off your jacket,” Before she stripped off her jacket she had managed to revert her previous transformation of her arms. The guard grabbed at a vile on his belt along with a syringe and proceeded to fill the syringe with the green liquid. The guard carefully placed the vile back into his belt then moved toward Delta and took her arm into his gloved hands before he placed the needle on her skin.

“I’m sorry, this isn’t happening!” The skin beneath the needle changed before she had finished her sentence into its crystallized form. Unfortunately the guard had already put too much pressure onto the other end, which caused the needle to break. “I’ll be leaving now!”

The one thing she couldn't do was let some guard chase her outside the building otherwise that would call attention to every single guard. Delta bought her two crystallizes arms together, pulled back and swung at the guard’s head. His helmet would protected him from any serious damage but that wouldn’t stop him from being knocked nearly unconscious. His hands had flown up and absorbed most of the blow but he still he staggered backwards. Delta forcefully grabbed his head with her hands and slammed it against the wall making the guard let out a painfully loud shout. She delivered the next blow just as swiftly as the first two; she kneed him in the gonads, which caused his downfall as he slumped to the floor. A sigh left her mouth as she walked toward the door; thankfully she stopped and looked back. The guard’s fingers were moving toward his walkie-talkie Delta rushed over and slammed her heel right into the middle of the communication device rendering it absolutely useless. She slid her jacket back on and walked out the door careful to not make any unnecessary noises before she took off down the hall from where she originally came.

The nervousness settled in further with each step she took, she hoped and prayed that her little interaction hadn’t gather any attention. When she got to the lobby she saw Tomasz next to a guard whispering something in his ear and as soon as he saw her his eyes lit up and he gestured toward her. A dozen curses left her mouth as Delta turned towards the door and bolted out and down the street; it was a bad day to wear heels. It seemed like her Tomasz didn’t like where she had placed her knife earlier, if she ever saw him again she make for certain that she finished the job. Delta looked over her shoulder to see three guards in pursuit of her and that probably wasn’t all of them.

The affairs of Hawaii went on much as it always did. Slow, steady, and in James Hazen's eyes, boring as hell. You would think that the discovery of the Atlanteans would have changed something there, and you would be dead wrong. It was almost the same as when the events of September 11th hit New York, or when a new pope was appointed to the Vatican, or when the swine flu outbreak began in Mexico. Even though the events were severe and had major impacts, if they didn't occur in the area, all it was, was pass-time news. That was the sad truth of life there. People weren't concerned much with the troubles outside. Or perhaps they were concerned, but instead of confronting or addressing the problem, they figured the problem may never reach them there, and eventually the problem would somehow be corrected. And for most people, that would be alright.

But James Hazen was different. He hated this false sense of security and tranquility that existed here. He hated that nothing was taken seriously, and nothing was ever seen as a serious matter. Even the latest event was just a hiccup in these people's lives. Sometimes, James had to actually imagine things happening, just so he wouldn't drive himself crazy. It usually would be some small imagining, like a car crash at the corner of the street, or an individual holding up the store where he worked.

But lately, his imaginings grew even bolder. This began to occur after a strange tattoo appeared on his neck, one in the shape of distorted arrow, pointing outward in an unbalanced circle. It was an Atlantean tattoo. Soon after, he discovered he had an ability, just like the people in the newspapers he would read about. Now, the big news didn't seem so far away anymore. It was right here, right in front of them. None of them knew, but James intended to show them. He just needed the right sign. So for now, he simply imagined doing it, sending a spark in the convenience store where he worked, causing a light bulb to burst. Shut off the power in an office building floor, if he can manage it. For a while, that suited him. But as the desire to actually do something about it grew, so did James's patience withdraw. A boiling point would eventually be reached.

James swept the floor at the corner of the convenience store where he worked. He had no idea why he still worked there. He hated the job. The pay was crap. His boss was an a$$ hole. He assumed he needed the money, but sometimes no amount of money was worth it. Harold, James's acquaintance and coworker managed the cash register as a few customers wandered the store. Then suddenly, there was breaking news on the television which was attached to the wall on the adjacent corner to James.

"Evidence was found today that the cause of the Berlin Explosion was the work of Atlanteans. André Cabrillo, brother of Leo Cabrillo, member of the Atlantean Royal Family, was suspected to be the cause of the explosion as survivors claimed to have seen the 20 year old in the streets on Berlin that day as well as physical DNA evidence at the heart of the chaos. Other members of the Royal Family have made no comments towards his disappearance but together with the United Nations have rushed an international bill, calling all Atlanteans to register themselves and their abilities with the local Atlantean Relief Centres in all capital cities. Anybody now caught using Atlantean Abilities without being registered or carrying a registration card will face detainment.

"More on this story soon..."

"Holy sh*t, man." Harold said in his typical surfer accent. He turned to James, who had stopped sweeping and looked intently at the TV. "Can ya believe it? I mean, I heard the news, but to think that they're like, here. It's just crazy, man, ya know?"

"Yea...crazy." James said softly. He wondered what he should do. Obviously, he would have to register, or get detained. But did they really know who among them was Atlantean? He was sure nobody knew he was one. But it might be safe to do so anyways. Suddenly, the manager of the store came into the room from the back, while James and Harold still watched the TV. James hadn't noticed him come in, while Harold had, and quickly went back to work. Seeing that James wasn't doing his job, but was instead watching the TV, the manager walked up to James from behind, before slowly clearing his throat to let James know he was there.

At the sound of the throat clearing, (which James had been hearing a lot lately due to the number of times he had snuck out of work, or took longer breaks to practice his ability secretly) James's eyes snapped away from the TV and to the manager.

"Mr. Hazen, this is the second time I've had to get you back to doing your job today. What is with you? Over the past month, there's been a dozen cases of you arriving late, leaving early, not doing your job, and everything in between! What the heck is going on?"

James didn't reply. He began sweeping the area, hoping his manager would just walk away.

"Mr. Hazen, are you even listening to me?"

"Remotely...." James said quietly, continuing to sweep the floor.

"Excuse me?" The manager said, crossing his arms as he gave James a disbelieving look. Harold, as well as the rest of the customers stared back at them, wondering what was going on. This was the type of thing that caused the most attention among people in the area. It was a sad fact that for so many, this would be the highlight of their day, an argument in the convenience store. "James, I'm talking to you. Look at me when I'm talking to you!"

James sighed and stopped sweeping as he turned to the manager. "Do you mind? I'm trying to do my work..."

"Oh, now you're interested in doing work? Well if you were doing your job before, I wouldn't have to be having this unpleasant conversation with you right now."

"Listen, man. Just back off..." James said softly.

"No. You don't get to make that call. I have a business to run, and when little sh*ts like you don't do your job, it makes me lose money!"

James looked at the man irritatingly. He clenched his fists, and closed his eyes, trying to calm down. The manager continued to scream in his face.

"You think you're so special? You're nothing. Nothing but a waste of a person. If I wanted, I could fire you and hire a retard and he'd be doing a better job than you!"

James could feel his heart beating faster. A light bulb flickered for a moment above the two. Nobody noticed.

"You are a worthless piece of sh*t, and you're lucky you even have this job to begin with, and you disrespect me and think you're badass? You're just a prick who thinks he's hot stuff!"

James's breathing became more uncontrolled. Light flickered above in the store, but the manager was too busy screaming to notice.

"Why don't you do us all a favor and either get the hell outta here, or go drop dead somewhere, cause it's obvious you can't do sh*t here anymo-"

The light bulbs above all shattered, minus one which flickered on and off uncontrollably at the end of the store. The manager never had a chance to finish his sentence. It all happened so fast, even James wasn't sure what happened. He just knew he stuck out his hand to the manager's chest, and the released all his anger out through his hand. Sparks of lightning flickered around the area from the aftershock. James looked around, noticing the customers and Harold all were on the ground, their hands covering their heads, many in shock and fear. The manager lay motionless on the ground. Whether he was unconscious, or worse, James didn't know, but he didn't bother finding out. He didn't look at anyone else, but ran through the outside door. He didn't stop running, turning the street corner and heading down the first smaller street he could find, and then kept on running. A taxi cab was driving close by. James hailed it, and got inside.

"Airport." He said to him, the only words he needed to say before the taxi driver took off. Luckily, he had been prepared to leave, all of his cards and passport on him always since the day he discovered his powers, on the off chance he had to leave. Now, he had no choice. Whatever happened in Berlin was irrelevant. He didn't know what the deal was with the Atlantean Center, but knew there was no way he was going to one now, not after what he did in the store. If he got into the system and they found out about his power, they could easily trace the same power to the incident there. No, he had to get out. He didn't know where he was going, and he didn't care. All he knew was it was time for a change. A big one. This was the beginning for James Hazen.

__________________

A Legend once told me that roleplaying is about bringing people together and celebrating creative vision.
Paired with the ArtsyInfinite and the Spectacular Shak

Misha Vedernikov - Atlantean Relief Centre, Warsaw, Poland

October 31st, 2012

"So vhat you are trying to say to me, Anabel, is that even though he vants to eat her, girl still loves vampire?" Misha hastily flipped through the black, binded book in his hand, frowning as he tried to find the page he was looking for. "Also, vhat does... irrevocably mean?"

"I can't believe you're reading that garbage. Where did you get it?" You could almost hear Annie shaking her head over the line.

"I found it in car."

"You're a really bad liar, Misha."

"Okay, I found it in book store."

"You stole it?! ... Okay, did you really ring me to talk about Twilight?" Misha flicked back to the page he was on, and adjusted his reading glasses. They were miniscule compared to the rest of his face.

"Yes."

"Misha, I have way better things to do."

"Then go."

"Fine. Also, your target is approaching. Stop reading your awful literature and go do your job," the reciever clicked and the call ended. Misha licked his thumb, turned the page, read two or three more sentences before placing his bookmark between the pages and placed the book on the passenger seat. He sure had taken his time and his target, Delta had already sneaked herself into the Relief Centre. Though this would make things very much harder, Misha hardly mulled over his options and stepped out of his large SUV. The weather was cold but fortunately that no only was Misha wearing an enormous coat for his enormous body, but his Russian skin was thick and basically immune to the cold. This was t-shirt weather but the coat made him feel like an actual secret agent.

Misha was someone you did not want to walk next to in the street, let alone be on the opposite end of his fist. He was a very tall man, probably around 6'10" (maybe taller) and was the definition of a pro wrestler. His muscles were the size of infants and he could probably break boulders if given the oppourtunity. His face, the subject of a few beatings in his lifetime, was a bit mishapen, but overall found and with little hair. He had a rough, greying goatee (thanks to his age) but his head was as smooth as a bowling ball. His eyes were small and a little beady and were the gateway into his soft, mushy and kind soul. One of his most noticable features was his tattoo; multiple spirals which curled over the right side of his face.

He followed at a slow pace behind the young girl and it wasn't long before she was back out of the Centre, running straight for and past the large, Russian man. He smiled one of his gentle smiles at her and ran for her. She ran fast, especially for a girl in heels, but Misha was a tank with the legs of a horse and was very quick to intercept her by grabbing her from behind and pulling her up over his shoulder.

He turned his hand into a fist and seemingly out of nowhere, sand mixed with snow and dirt came from the ground and rained on the guards. Caught off guard, they all slipped and fell into it, allowing themselves to be buried in it. Not fatally, just enough for Misha to chuckle, wave and make a light jog back to his car.

"Are you comfortable, girl?" he asked his new companion spread over his shoulder. Manners were something that were not foreign to Misha, but perhaps he took this whole 'recruiting' thing a little wrong.

Oakley North – Atlantean Relief Centre, London, England

October 31st, 2012

Oakley got a bit of a fright when she felt the weight of a jacket being placed on her shoulders. She flinched as she noticed it was a person, much larger than herself, sitting down next to her. How odd it was that a complete stranger would come over and talk to her! Maybe... he was just a polite and friendly person? Oakley hadn't even given talking to another person a second thought, just a big nope.

"Crazy day, isn't it?" he opened with. She semi-agreed with this. She had two weeks to deal with an over sized arm. Comparing today to the previous 14 days, it was pretty okay. "Name's Nathaniel. You could call me 'Nate' if you want. Everyone seems to. What's your name?"

"I guess. My name's Oakley," she said, not sure if she should share a nickname with him. It seemed too personal of a thing. At least he was very open and accepting of friends. She considered asking the man about his ability, but felt perhaps that again, was too personal. What else do you talk about? The weather? It was cold, but nothing really to talk about. Maybe if she just let him steer the words.

"Thank-you. For, for the jacket," was all she could really think of.

??? - ???

October 31st, 2012

"Good morning!" he cheered at his daughter as she strode down the hallway into the kitchen. It was probably 6am or so, maybe a little later. She was not known to sleep in and would greet her father the same way, without fail.

"Good morning, sir."

"I trust you slept well?"

She didn't reply, instead seating herself down at the dinner table and picking up whatever was in front of her. At this point, it was raisin toast, nicely buttered with a dash of strawberry jam. He took her silence as a yes and continued with perfecting his outfit. By outfit, he meant disguise but he didn't want to be so crass.

"How do I look?" he turned around, presenting his final touches to her. She lazily looked him up and down.

"Like a Hawaiian cab driver."

"Excellent!" his 'disguise' consisted of a pair of dirty jeans, worn sneakers, a slightly ripped Hawaiian shirt (perhaps that was overkill) and his face was quite unkept. As much as he hated being anything less than neat, it was vital for the part. As soon as he had finished, he would make sure to change. "Are you ready to leave, after you finish eating?"

"Yes," she was already halfway through her toast and quicky finished it off.

"Would you like me drop you off at school while I'm on the way to work?" he laughed. She didn't.

"Yes."

* * *

It was actually remarkably easy to 'steal' a cab in Hawaii. As long as you walked in and looked like you belonged, nobody questioned you, even if you were unrecognisable. He walked into the car park, placed a hand on the most average looking cab and the lock sprang open after a moment of concentrating. And then, he just drove out, heading down a side street. The roads were unfamiliar (he had never lived in Hawaii or spent more than a few months here) but he seemed to know where he was going. He spotted a figure walking quite quickly down another street, who hailed him down. He didn't hesitate to pull the cab over.

"Airport," the newcomer said rather hastily. With a nod, he pulled the car back on the road, heading in the general direction of the airport but had no intentions of actually going there.

"Now, do you think the airport is a good idea?" he said with a very un-Hawaiian British accent, arching his head back to the newcomer with a small smile on his face. "It's just a little bit suspicious, don't you think? A young person, like yourself, taking a spontaneous flight to somewhere with nothing on them but a passport and a little bit of money." Now, he turned right around, not even looking at the road and no hands on the steering wheel. Despite this, the car didn't veer off the road, still following it perfectly. "With the news about the Atlanteans and this new 'registration' act, one look at that on your neck," he pointed to the tattoo which poked up from the newcomer's t-shirt, "and you'll be detained, kept for questioning and probably sent to some jail somewhere where they can make sure no 'accidents' will happen."

The car turned left down a street and he didn't even flinch, keeping a warm, steady smile on his face.

"I'm not sure you've thought this through."

??? - Atlantean Relief Centre, London, England

October 31st, 2012

It was cold. It was a little wet. From the snow. This didn't deter her. She couldn't get in line quite just yet. She had to wait for the perfect moment.

With a nod of the head, the taxi cab driver pulled into the road and began driving to the direction of the airport. James rubbed his hands together, his foot tapping uncontrollably. He was nervous, his heart racing from the events that just transpired. But he had to calm down. He didn't want to draw any attention to himself. If anything could ever be noticed in Hawaii, it was when someone was acting too nervous or jittery.

"Now, do you think the airport is a good idea?" The cab driver asked James, in an accent definitely not of a typical Hawaiian. James couldn't tell for sure, but it seemed British. The man arched his head back and smiled at him. James did not return the style, but instead began to try to think of who the man could possibly be. "It's just a little bit suspicious, don't you think? A young person, like yourself, taking a spontaneous flight to somewhere with nothing on them but a passport and a little bit of money."

The last sentence caused James to begin to panic, although he did his best to try not to show it on his face. He had to play it cool. He couldn't give the man anything to work with that he could use later. By now, James had already assumed that the man was from some sort of authority, which means he probably could have been bugged. Judging by the comment, he probably could have been following him the entire time, ever since he discovered his power. While these thoughts and more raced through his head, James stared long and hard at the man, letting him continue to speak as he remained silent. He was definitely from some sort of police force, or worse. At least, that is what James first assumed. But there was no mention of powers or Atlanteans, or anything of the nature, so he couldn't assumed anything just yet.

Then, he let go of the wheel entirely. James's heart beat as he grabbed hold of the side of the car, believing that the vehicle was about to veer off the road, but no such thing happened. Instead, it remained as still and steady as ever. At this point, James had no idea what the hell to believe. Still, he sat in silence, hoping an explanation was coming, and also hoping he wasn't about to be arrested, or killed.

"With the news about the Atlanteans and this new 'registration' act, one look at that on your neck," he pointed to the tattoo on James's neck, "and you'll be detained, kept for questioning and probably sent to some jail somewhere where they can make sure no 'accidents' will happen. I'm not sure you've thought this through."

The car suddenly made a left turn on the street, the man still not making contact with the wheel. The way he described the situation, it didn't seem like he was actually with the authorities. The fiasco with the car gave James a different idea. Another Atlantean, he thought. But that still left the question of what he wanted. Was he here to kill him? No, if he wanted to do that, he probably would have done it a while ago. It seemed he was here for a different reason, one not fully apparent to James. James tried to break down the facts. He was an Atlantean, James was almost fully sure of that. He was most likely not in his normal clothing, as he had made himself dress as the locals would. His accent was one most likely of England, which meant he had traveled a long way to come here. Was he after James specifically, or just on the way to others? While James collected the information to try to put something together, he looked to the side of the street, wondering if a fall out of the taxi cab at that speed would kill him. It most likely wouldn't, but it would leave him with cuts, bruises, and most likely broken bones. James wasn't sure he was ready to take that route yet. Not until he knew what this man wanted. But if he would discover that his life was in danger, James would do whatever he had to to get out.

James crossed his arms, trying to seem as casual as he could, given the situation. He eyed the taxi driver. "You have a better idea?" He asked the man, hoping this response would be adequate enough to get the reason for his visit without giving away information on the off chance he really was a cop.

__________________

A Legend once told me that roleplaying is about bringing people together and celebrating creative vision.
Paired with the ArtsyInfinite and the Spectacular Shak

With another long lasting look over her leather jacket, with the breeze working against Delta it kept hitting her in the face every time she did, Delta saw a very large man who she hadn’t previously seen before. He was a bald man who donned casual clothes unlike the other guards; perhaps he was apart of some special forces the Centre had hired? Now, he trailed closely behind her, was he a guard? Her breath was becoming short; she only had the energy for one last burst of energy to escape these people. Swear words leaked out of Delta’s mouth, she had a tendency to do that often. A thought crossed Delta’s mind as she tried to keep up her pace, of course they had abilities just like her and this guy must have super speed or whatever the technical term was for it. With a last minute decision she decided to shift her running into high gear in an attempt to avoid whatever fate this man had for her. Her heels pounded the pavement beneath her feet but she could already tell that she wasn’t going to out run this man. Unfortunately due to circumstances that weren’t her fault, besides the heels, the man managed to wrap his large arms around Delta and slung her over his shoulder as if she weighed nothing.

"Does little girl need help?" The man had an accent that she was familiar with but it definitely wasn’t Polish, but why was he helping her when he was with the guards? "These guards are flies compared to Misha!"

“Holy hell, put me down!” Unknowingly all her words were spoken in Polish not realizing he had spoken to her in English. The older generation of Polish people didn’t speak English very well or refused to, so she generally just spoke Polish to anyone who wasn’t in her age group.

Delta didn’t like the feeling of being treated like a sack of potatoes, which is probably all this man ate back in his homeland. Though, that didn’t explain his enormous size or the fact that he was kidnapping her. Apparently his name was Misha, and he liked to refer to himself in the third person, a typical brute thing to do. In an effort to forcibly make him let her go she began to pound on his back with fist using the energy she hadn't spent before, which was very little. Delta wasn't unsure why she ran in the first place, only the weak run from their problems. This had been an act of cowardice and she knew she had to make up for it some way, if only she could reach her knives that were strapped on her hips... If she had fought, broke a few necks, she could’ve made it out alive and most importantly be free. Somehow the man dispatched all of the guards but seeing as her face was to the man’s coat she couldn’t tell how he did it. He must be an Atlantean, one with two abilities? As far as she knew they were only capable of having one.

"Are you comfortable, girl?" Misha kept asking question that she felt he didn't really want answers to, at least not the answers she was going to give.

“Oh, yes. I’m very comfortable on some stranger’s back who may or may not want to kill me,” Delta’s voice was laced with sarcasm and she even managed to speak in English this time. “Also, if you wouldn’t mind tell me, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?”

"I guess. My name's Oakley," she said before pausing for a moment. "Thank you. For, for the jacket."

"No worries. It's actually a bit warm out for my taste anyway," Nathaniel said without much thought trying to break the ice. The new ability made him admire the cold. That or he simply preferred the cold now. With a deep breath, He leaned back against the wall, trying to get as comfortable as possible all things considered. The ground was hardly a comfy sofa, so getting comfortable was probably a pipe dream. Can't fault him for trying. He didn't know how long he had to wait for his name to be called or be processed or whatever strange behind the scenes conspiracy would take place between now and whenever he could leave, so getting comfortable and making a few friends (or at least one) seemed like the most reasonable idea. Oakley, though, seemed like a project to befriend. Not impossible though, but difficult.

Truthfully, Nathaniel had no idea why he chose to approach the small blonde girl in the first place. Perhaps he felt bad for her. She appeared to be younger than most of the others here. She was maybe what…16, 17 years old. That places her in the midst of high school. Dramatic years those were for Nathaniel and he managed to avoid the bulk of it. Also, he couldn't help but notice the cast on her arm. Nathaniel broke his wrist a few times, but never an arm. He was curious as to why she had her arm all wrapped up. Some kind of accident maybe? Probably better to not ask.

Bored, Nathaniel gently ran his fingers through his hair, trying to soak his hands before cupping them together, one on top of the other. His eyes narrowed a bit as he focused on his hands. In a few seconds, Nathaniel removed the top one and lying in the palm of his other hand was a sculpture of a wolf in mid leap. It was far from a flawless sculpture, revealing that Nathaniel was not a masterful artist quite yet. "I'm not sure if you are big fan of sculptures or wolves for that matter, but here is a gift. From one Atlantean to another," he said as he offered the small token of friendship to Oakley. Hopefully that would get the shy little girl to start talking.

It had been over a week since Kim read about a large explosion in Berlin, which had killed many people. This news scared him, especially since it was after the Atlanteans had revealed themselves to the world. The reveal also had changed his life, much to his displeasure, considering his shut in lifestyle is ruined by his power since its manifestation. Luckily, his changes have not been very regular and he had managed to make it home relatively easy the last two times, since they were only short changes and she didn't have a chance to get very far away; with no repeats of his first transformation happening yet. Flicking through a news aggregation site he saw something that shook him, it was an article about the Berlin explosion, and it had bad news for him in it.

"Evidence was found today that the cause of the Berlin Explosion was the work of Atlanteans. André Cabrillo, brother of Leo Cabrillo, member of the Atlantean Royal Family, was suspected to be the cause of the explosion as survivors claimed to have seen the 20 year old in the streets on Berlin that day as well as physical DNA evidence at the heart of the chaos. Other members of the Royal Family have made no comments towards his disappearance but together with the United Nations have rushed an international bill, calling all Atlanteans to register themselves and their abilities with the local Atlantean Relief Centres in all capital cities. Anybody now caught using Atlantean Abilities without being registered or carrying a registration card will face detainment.

"More on this story soon..."

“Oh no. OH NO! They expect me to be able to go outside and register my power? This is bad, I can't do this!” He said to himself in a panic, just the thought of having to go to the centre was scaring him, the amount of people there would have to be massive. If my transformations stay short I should be able to keep it a secret. Though he knew that there were already people who knew he transformed into a girl, including his family, this was the best thing his panicking mind could think of. He did not want to leave his bedroom, especially now with the added risk of transforming into a person loving female. A few more hours went along as he debated with himself on whether or not he would go to the centre, before he decided to just call them.

“Hallå, Atlantean Relief Centre – Stockholm Branch, This is Artur speaking, how may I help you?” The voice behind the phone said, slightly scaring Kim.

”Uh- um.. Hello.. My name's Kim and I'd.. I'd like register myself.. myself as an At.. Atlantean..” He stuttered, struggling through the short amount of words he had to say.

”I'm sorry Kim, but you ha-”

”Oh never mind Artur,” an unexpected female voice cut Artur off halfway through his reply. ”I'll be coming down now, I'm sure there's a few attractive atlanteans there for me to play with. Hopefully you're one too, you have a very sexy voice.” She said before hanging up without awaiting the reply from Artur. She was back, and she was excited to be going outside, hoping that she'd be able to have some fun this time, since the last two times were disappointedly short. Looking in the mirror she threw her male clothes to the ground cladding herself in her illusions, in the form of a s----y santa, showing off much more of her skin then was really smart for the weather. After adjusting her clevage a little bit she put on the trenchcoat that her mother had given her after the first time she had gone out, in her mind for warmth while walking the streets, and incase she changed back in the middle of the centre. Checking that she had her ID, (regardless of the fact the picture was her male form,) she left the house and began towards the centre.

The walk to the centre was much more uneventful then she hoped for, with her coat only ”blowing” opening a few times, as she only saw a few attractive people to show off for. Luckily Mum got me this coat, cause it's kind cold today, even with the sun out. She thought as she neared the centre, the the concentration of people increased, as well as the amount of attractive people. There was also more people staring at her beauty, as well as stares of curiosity of why she was dressed in a tench coat. Her joy was increasing until all the attention was stolen by someone crashing into a fountain in the front of the centre. Investigating the crash herself she found a fairly attractive girl being escorted in the library. Not caring for the line, she ran up and started walking behind the guard as he escorted the girl into the lobby, leaving her in another line. Aww, oh well time to have some fun! Dropping her trench coat on the ground she walked up to the recently escorted girl and grabbed her the waist, pulling her in closer and whispered into her ears.

Agnes Johansson - Stockholm, Sweden

As Agnes was standing in line, minding her own business relatively much, hands suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her close. She had time to see a fluffy rim of a garment before a voice whispered into her ear. "You are beautiful, and that landing of yours outside really improved my day, thank you."

Her face turned red in one second flat. Instinctively, she pushed the other woman away and flew up two meters up into the air. The queue around her pointed and gave her annoyed shouts like "hey, don't use your power here!" but when Agnes finally really looked at who had done it, she was a bit too stunned to listen to them.

It was a beautiful girl clad in sexy santa clothing, is the best way to describe her as. What on earth could be that lunatic's power? Two guards moved in on the queue, heading for them. Agnes let out a "uh-oh", and slowly leveled back to the ground, hands up apologetically once again. The guards wouldn't let themselves be charmed this time around though. One of them grabbed Agnes' arm and tried to pull her out from the queue.

The last line made several people in another queue turn around and look at her with wide eyes. Had she just called him a human in a sense as if she was not? As if she was a superior Atlantean? Agnes' angry face at this time certainly made it look like she had meant it that way. And truth was, when these imbecile guards thought she wanted to kill everyone or something just because she flied a little, she really did consider them dumb. Humans or not.

"Help me, santa!" she called out to the girl who had grabbed her just now. She didn't know exactly how she believed that she could help her; maybe by talking sense into the guards, saying it was her fault for surprising Agnes, or something. But she couldn't know how 'Santa' would interpret her plea for help.

"Hey Minerva? Hello, Minnie?" Chantelle waved her hand, bringing Minerva back to attention. They were sitting in a small cafe on a quite street in Riga, sipping coffee and watching the cars go by. A light October chill was in the air, and small breezes winded through the buildings reminding the inhabitants that winter was on its way. It was a mostly cloudless day, and the morning sun was peeking through the buildings painting them with a light glow, illumining the city. "Did you hear me the first time? What are you going to do?"

Minerva stared at her blankly. "Huh? About what?"

Chantalle laughed at her, a look of slight shock on her face. "You really didn't see the announcement did you. There was some sort of bombing in Germany yesterday or something. I heard that it leveled an entire block! And this is the best part, they say an Atlantean caused it! Beats me how they can figure that out, but suddenly everyone is really scared of them. They are calling for all Atlanteans to register themselves at some sort of center place, ya know?" She took a small sip of her coffee. "So your Atlantean, right? I mean, it would explain the weird stuff you've been doing. So are you going to register?"

Minerva had seen the report, which was one reason why she was so distracted. The other was because she was ADHD, but that was different. Whatever was happening, it was going to change things dramatically. "I...I don't know Chantalle. I don't know what to do. It's not like what I do is dangerous, right?"

Chantalle got a big grin on her face, "Yeah, right. 'Oops, just accidentally melted this giant metal statue! What a mess!' Look, you don't understand it really, so maybe it is dangerous and you just don't know it yet. I don't mean to be mean to you or anything, but maybe it would be safer if you registered."

Minerva shook her head. "That's just the thing. 'Registering'. What if it isn't really what they say it is? I mean, remember Mr. Lohts in eleventh grade? He told us that the Nazis convinced the Jews that they were just being moved somewhere safer where they would be put to work. What if the government is doing the same thing? Just rounding up all of those with powers so that they can get rid of them or something?"

Her friend snickered. "Of all the things in his class, that's what you remembered?" Then her expression got darker, "I know what you mean though. Of course there is a risk, but think of it this way. You guys have all of these amazing powers, and you think that normal people can stop you? I heard about this guy who was magnetic, and a guy who could zap people with lightning, or just talk to people and convince them to do things! And you think that normal humans will be able to put you in a cage and poke and prod you? I don't think that's the way its going to work Minerva. You guys are just too powerful. Most of you at least."

"Thanks Chantalle", Minerva replied. "I guess that's true. I may not be powerful, but others probably are. And they would put up a fight too if it came to it. I guess I probably should register." She put a smile on her face, "I mean, whats the worst that could happen!"

"That's the attitude! Now finish you coffee, its getting cold."

Later That Day - Riga, Latvia

Minerva took a deep breath, then let it out, standing in front of a plain concrete building. It felt out of place compared with the rest of the architecture in Riga, and leftover from the Soviet era. Obviously it had been re-purposed to act as the city's Atlantean Center, as a sign in front of the building displayed in plain neat letters, asking all Atlanteans to register. She took another breath, then started climbing the steps up to the building, then hesitantly pushing the door open, letting the warm air of the building spill out across her face. A small line was formed, perhaps a half dozen people of various ages stood in line, and a couple guards shouldering some sort of machine guns stood at the front.

While normally talkative and would talk to just about anyone, Minerva was much too nervous to do any talking, and she silently passed through the line. What would happen, what would they say, what happens afterwards? Before long, one of the guards called out "Next", and Minerva stepped forward cautiously. The guard said in a very bored tone, "Please hold out your arm." She nervously did so, then jumped as she saw that he had a needle in he right hand. Needles. She hated needles. More than snakes or spiders or heights or anything, needles scared her. She gulped and closed her eyes tight, and there was a sticking feeling in her arm, then it was gone. She opened her eyes again, and a small bump was forming on her arm. The guard simply nodded, then said in the same bored tone, "Go down the hallway, second door on the right. It should be marked."

She followed the guards directions, opening the directed door and nervously stepping in. It was a relatively small room, with only a desk and two chairs, and a small ceiling fan spinning slowly above their heads. A small man occupied the chair behind the desk, and was dressed like a very stereotypical scientist in a lab coat and everything. He gestured at the other chair and softly spoke, "Please, take a seat." He asked a few questions about identification, then jotted down a few notes on his notepad. "Right, so Minerva. Whats your ability?"

Minerva spoke as confidently as she could, and said, "Well, I can manipulate metal, sort of. Like, I can cause it to melt, and once I got it to reform."

"Hmm, interesting." He jotted a few more notes on his notepad. "Could I ask you to demonstrate for me?"

"Well, I could try." She looked for something metal, then picked up a metal pen that was laying on the desk. She stared on it and concentrated, willing with all her might to cause the metal to melt, dissolve, do anything. But the pen displayed an incredible lack of activity. After a few moments she shook her head, "I'm sorry, I can't really control it very well, it just sort of happens somethings."

The man only nodded and took a few more notes. Then he looked up at Minerva once again, "Could I see you arm please?" After briefly inspecting the bump that was slowly fading now, he nodded once again. "Its not a problem Miss Sirmais, perhaps we can entice your ability to display itself some other time. In the mean time, you can go down the hall to the left, there should be a set of white double doors. Go through there, then wait until your name is called."

Minerva sat there for a moment, then pushed the chair back and got up, walking back to, then out of the door. Over all, she thought, that went rather well.

Not surprisingly the girl whom Kim had embraced pushed herself away, before flying up into the air like it was nothing, face bright red. Wow, she can fly, I want her even more now. Kim thought as others in line began shouting and complaining, staring at both the flying girl and Kim, which she personally was ecstatic about. Apologising the girl landed again, people still commenting on her power use before two guards began moving towards them, with one going to each of the girls. Yuck, he’s not attractive in the least. She thought, judging the guards looks as he got closer, still unable to find anything attractive about the man, he was more fat than muscular, had a crocked nose, cauliflower ears, absolutely nothing about him was attractive to her. Such a disappointment.

The other guard had already made his way and grabbed Kim’s new found love, the flying girl, much to her annoyance and protest of the girl.
"Hey, stop that! I just accidentally flew a little - owch! - it's natural for us, it's just like sneezing for you - ow, let me go! Stupid human!!" The flying girl complained as the guard started strong arming her out of the queue. Slightly annoyed Kim started towards her, only to be stopped by the guard who was basically drooling over her scantily clad body.

“As much as I love people looking at me, I’d prefer if you didn’t drool publicly, you’re embarrassing yourself.” Kim said to the guard as gently as she possible could, though she still intended for it to cut the man deep. His reaction wasn’t what she expected though, instead of saying anything a cheesy smirk grew on his face before he lunged for her, his hands going directly for her breasts. With the clumsy elegance of a drunk ballerina Kim barely dodged the man’s attack, much to his frustration.

“Don’t resist girly, I’m just going to take you to a quiet room for some, punishment .” He said to her, the dirty thoughts he was having clearly portrayed on his face. The thought of him doing anything to her was too much for Kim, causing her to take a step back and cringe.

“Help me, Santa!” the flying girl called out, apparently struggling to get away. Thoughts rushed through Kim’s head before it struck her. If I help her, she may fall in love with me and let me have some fun with her. YAY! But first I have to get rid of this creep.. OH! I think that should work! Smiling, she began to imagine herself looking like a creature out of a horror movie, the most scary thing she could possibly think of, a massive spider. Apparently though, he power didn’t work like she first thought as the man didn’t seem to react at all, nearly within grabbing distance once again as she took another step back. With all her concentration she pictured the biggest, and most disgustingly scary spider she could as the guard stuck his hand out to grab her breast.

“ARGH! MONSTER!!” The guard screamed falling backwards before trying to scurry away from Kim. Confused the crowd look at Kim, just seeing the girl dressed in a sexy santa suit standing there, sighing in relief that he didn’t touch her and a large guard on the ground whimpering like a scared puppy, there was even a wet trail following him as he hurriedly moved away from her.

The other guard, was confused as well, he let go of the flying girl before he began to cautiously approach Kim, who was apparently a bigger threat, for reasons unknown to him. ”That’s enough girly, you’re not getting away with doing that to my colleague.” He said as he reached for the baton at his side, clearly ready to attack her with it.

This is bad. I’m not totally sure what I did to that one, let alone how to do it again if I’m getting attacked by a baton. A worried Kim thought, stretching her arms out in front of her in a futile attempt to put more distance between herself and the guard. The cards were stacked against her now, there was only one thing she could think to do.

“It’s your turn now beautiful!” She shouted to the now free flying girl that she had just protected, though clumsily. A weak smile was on Kim’s face as the looked at the girl, the fear of getting beaten down and her beautiful features damaged beginning to sink in.

Leo Cabrillo - Braga, Portugal

Tuesday October 30th, 2012

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to lay to rest Andre Martinez Romanos Cabrillo, a loved son and doted brother…”

Leo kept a stern face throughout the whole proceedings while his parents and relatives wept in grievance. Inside it felt as if he was being ripped apart piece by piece, but he kept those feelings in check; continuing to be the adored older brother Andre had thought he was. He refused now more than ever to shave the beard that had now grown wildly across his face; a joke Andre had made about it being his ‘mane’. The ceremony was a simple one with a single tombstone; not that there was much left of Andre to bury…

“This is bull, how could the AUP do something like this? Why did they have to target my brother? Do they want a war like no other on their hands?” Leo growled, he was slowly letting the staunch façade go to be replaced by his underlying self.

“You have my condolences, Leo, but to be honest Andre should not have been in Berlin in the first place.”

“Katerina! Have some respect, we’re not all battle hardened like you.” River interjected, today’s choice of clothing was a red and black Cheongsam; hugging close enough to her body to display her rather slim lines.

“Thank you, the both of you, but mi hermano shouldn’t have been in Berlin…” Leo trailed off before doubling over as his body sprouted fur and bones began to realign. It was a painful process, but Leo somehow managed to do it with as little pain as possible; something Andre had admired about him. Soon a golden lion stood where Leo had, and with a giant roar it bounded into the forest that bordered their estate.

Katerina scoffed, looking around to make sure none of their ‘non-Atlantean’ guests had seen the commotion. She felt a hand grasp her shoulder, turning her towards River’s stern face.

“Let him be, he’s cut on the inside; it doesn’t take a Telekinetic to understand that.”

“What happened to our ‘fearless’ leader?”

“His brother died. Not everyone is as bulletproof as you. Now, how about that wine? I’m thinking red might be a bit insensitive…” The two ladies walked back up to the house where the rest of the procession had congregated. Tomorrow they would be heading back to Boston, while she trusted Justin, River wasn’t entirely sure he could handle all the affairs by himself for more than a day or two.

Katerina Lukyanenko – Stokholm, Sweden

Wednesday October 31st, 2012

It hadn’t been her choice to come to Sweden, but Katernia’s Swedish roots on her mother side gave her an upper hand in dealing with the locals. She wasn’t your typical desk jockey either, so sitting in the Atlantean Relief Centre sifting through pages of registered Atlanteans quickly gave her a headache.

“I’m going outside,” she announced, because of who she was, no one would oppose nor object to her act of leaving.

Once outside, she felt the cool, Autumn breeze wash over her, inhaling deeply. Instinctually, she reached for her pocket, soon realising that she had no cigarettes left and cursed her way through Swedish, Russian and possibly Turkish. To her left, she could see the rather short line through the double doors of the library they had set up in. What amazed her was the amount of people who were trying to pass off as Atlantean. At the doors, each guard injected the self-proclaimed Atlanteans with a gene marker; if the injection area raised up, the person was Atlantean. For anybody else, it would simply fade; and they would be turned away.

Suddenly a girl flew up into the air and the guards jumped to restrain her. Another girl entered the scene scantily clad and Katerina soon saw this getting out of hand quickly as the guards tried to restrain the frantic girls.

She grabbed hold of the door handle quickly, before making a beeline for the guards, “What the hell is going on?” She roared in Swedish, swinging her now metal fist into the first guard making a lunge towards the scantily clad girl and then sending her elbow into the guard who restrained the flying girl. With both now free, she sent the guards packing back to the line before addressing the two girls.

“Sorry about them, they are only human. I am Katerina Lukyanenko of the Royal Family, would you two girls like to follow me inside?” She addressed both in Swedish, offering a hand politely.

Agnes Johansson - Atlantean Centre of Stockholm, Sweden

“It’s your turn now beautiful!”

The words were accompanied by a weak smile on the face of the Santa girl. She had without hesitation moved forward and caught the attention of one of the guards, somehow making him crawl off screaming, while Agnes had been watching with her jaw dropped, even forgetting to struggle to get rid of the guard who was on her. Santa's boobs were just too large to not stare at, even if you were a girl. And it wasn't like they were properly covered either, something that the other guard had discovered and gotten punished for noticing.

When the first guard had seemed to decide that Santa was a bigger thread at the moment, he had let go of Agnes and moved forward towards the other girl with his baton raised.

Now, Agnes watched the scene in slow motion. The guards were doing there job; keeping peace in the line. They were probably afraid of Atlanteans since they were clearly not Atlanteans themselves. It couldn't be an easy job. But that other guard had tried to grab Santa in an offensive way! Maybe that was because her suggestive clothing did things with his head though... It almost did things with Agnes' head after all.

And Santa... She was a really strange woman. But before Agnes' mind had time to sort out what they thought about her, a new person flew in from nowhere and struck the guard down with a metallic arm. The surprise made Agnes leap backwards up into the air again and become hanging there, two meters up.

"Sorry about them, they are only human," the new player said. She was a girl as well, or a woman perhaps. "I am Katerina Lukyanenko of the Royal Family, would you two girls like to follow me inside?” She addressed both in Swedish, offering a hand politely.

Agnes glanced at Santa and then struggled to gently enough float down back towards the ground. It wasn't easy; somehow she hadn't quite figured out how to control her altitude downwards yet. Upwards was easier.

"Hej," she said to Katerina. "Uh... Your guards aren't really helpful. I didn't mean to start a commotion, I swear!" No use to make enemies now, she did want to become a real Atlantean person after all! A quick thought of the girl she was now calling Santa made Agnes look her way before she began following Katerina inside the Atlantean Centre.

"Are you ok there?" Agnes asked her. She doubted that the other woman was shaken; she didn't exactly appear fragile and shy. But it was nice to ask, right? She had helped her after all.

((OOC: if Ichiro and CWP are alright with it, we can just say Agnes and Sant- I mean Kim are walking behind Katerina inside now?))

Feeling the final shudder as the train pulled into London, Charlie looked up from her phone, its screen flashing up the grinning face of mark signalling yet another incoming call. She had been on the train for two and half hours now and though it had been an uneventful trip, Charlie found herself reluctant to step off the train.

Staring out through the grease smeared glass and ignoring her vibrating phone, the dark hair girl regarded the station with a glum expression. She hadn’t exactly wanted to come down to London. The idea of registering herself was more repulsive than Nick Green, a perv in her class with gel slicked hair and skinny jeans.

As the loud, echoing deep of the doors opening sounded and the usual shuffling broke out through the carriage as people hurried to grab their luggage and leave, Chairlie pulled herself up from her chair and shouldered her rucksack, sweeping a shaking hand through her hair and teasing the long strands back from her face.
She disliked being London at the best of time and this instance was no different.

When she at last alighted from the train, earphones pressed solidly into her ears, Charlie followed the trickle of fellow passengers through the sour faced shoppers which pressed in around the open doors, towards the ticket barrier.
When she was last out, her feet sore from being trodden on several times on her way over to her destination, she then made her way towards the taxi layby, limping slightly. Finding a free taxi and flashing the address of the centre she had found via Google that morning, Charlie then settled back into the warm leather seats in silence.

Her driver was thankfully not the chatty type and after a few exchanged of pleasantries, her bearded, beer bellied driver turned the radio on and fixed his eyes to the road, allowing Charlie to resume her sulking.

It was because of her mother’s persistence that she was here against her will. Her mother had woken her up early and dragged her out of room, barely even awake, to show her the news report and after half an hour of passive aggressive comments about her refusal to go, she had caved and agreed. Her mother had developed powers too but due to work, had sent Charlie down to register first with the promise of meeting her in the evening.

I better get Nandos out of this. Charlie thought bitterly as she watched the world whizz by her out the window. It was here, when her phone, now in her jean pockets began to vibrate again. Reaching in to her pocket, she wrapped her fingers around the cold objected and pulled it out, her dark eyes regarding the screen from a distance.

The screen flickered into being, presenting her gaze with mark’s goofy grin. He was calling yet again, this making it the fourteenth missed call today. With two weeks of silence from her end, she had hoped both Mia and Mark would have gotten the message, but apparently her hopes were miss placed. Watching it ring to another few minutes, the phone finally died down and the call ended, but Charlie knew it would be another few minutes before he tried again.
Tucking the phone back into her jean pocket she then glanced out the window, just in time to watch as the taxi pulled to the side of the curb.

Paying the driver and waving goodbye, before stepping back out into the cold October air, Charlie headed to the back of the queue which had formed, zigzagging down the street, with hundreds of faces staring out, some happy, others just depressed.

When she at last took her place behind a group of overly bubbly teenagers, she then waited, earphones once again pressed against her ears to drown out any questions which may be asked in her direction. Every now and then, reaching up to pull her hair way from her face, or tweak her fingerless gloves.

It was another hour before she finally got to see someone inside the centre and her first encounter was brief. A women wearing horn rimmed glasses passed her a form to fill out and then told her to move on and wait in a corridor. Doing as she was asked she was then eventually ushered into a small office room which accommodated a small desk and a gentleman, dressed sharply, sat behind it.

He motioned for her to come in and sit down, to which Charlie obliged and took a seat. Handing over her paper work
with her name, address and contact details jotted across its surface.

The man regarded it for a little while, face etched with a mixture of tiredness and boredom before glancing up to Charlie’s small heart shaped face, lips thinning to a solid, cold red line.

“Well Miss Hunter, your ability?” He asked, his voice cold and stern, as he meet her gaze.
Charlie shifted uncomfortably under his watchful eyes, and tucking back a lose lock of hair behind one ear, she smiled awkwardly.

“Uhm..” she started, lipping her lips nervously as she tried to look at anything bar the man whom was sat behind the desk. His cold mannerisms were enough to make her skin itch under his gaze as he remained silent and unblinking.
“If you please, Miss Hunter, I do not have all day.” He said, the chilled tone resuming it’s familiar remoteness.
Charlie nodded at this and finally parted her lips as her brain fished for an acceptable reply.

“I can heal people.” She finally settled for, now setting her gaze to meet the man’s as he regarded with her an odd expression.

“You can heal people?” He repeated, his tone now sounding even colder than before. “Do you have any proof of this? As I am not in the mood for jokes, Miss Hunter.”

“Well that’s the thing.” Charlie replied, almost surprised at the gentleman’s reactions to her reply. She had expected anything but annoyance and boredom. “And this will sound odd. But you must trust me. I need you to give yourself a paper cut. Just a small one.”

His reaction to this statement however, was exactly what she had expected. The man grinned and then shook his head, as if he did not believe what this small girl in front of him had asked.

“You want me to cut myself?” He repeated, almost laughing. “Are you mad?”

“No.” Charlie replied, curtly and keeping her face as plane as possible. “You requested my ability and I plan to obliged. Now if you don’t mind.” She said, nodding her head towards her own files. “I promise this won’t hurt you and much as it will hurt me.”

With that, the man leaned back in his chair and stroked his chin thoughtfully, before shrugging and picking up the piece of the paper and resting the tip of his index finger along the top of the page.

“This better not be a joke Miss Hunter, otherwise you will not enjoy what is in store for you.” He said, fixing her once again with his cold glare, before he sharply drew his finger across the top of the paper.

The Hiss of pain which slipped over his lips, signalled to Charlie that the paper had done it’s job, slicing through his flesh cleanly. Pulling off her one of her gloves and reaching forward, she nodded to him to place his injured hand in hers, to which the man obeyed, grimacing slightly, before everything changed.

The familiar burning sensation raced across Charlie’s hand upon contact with the man’s own clammy touch, and within a few seconds, the sharp, crisp sensation of pain appeared on her own index finger. With drawing her hand, Charlie sighed and lifted her finger to show the man.

An identical injury oozed tiny droplets of blood from the tip of her finger, while with her un-injured hand she gestured to his own.

“You’re healed. Do we approve?” She asked shortly.

The man simply stared from her hand, to his own, regarding his finger in amazement. The cut had completely disappeared, not even a trace of the wound remained from before, no scar or scab, not even an ounce of pain.
“That is plenty.” He managed to stutter, before shouting through the door. A woman dressed in a grey blazer and jeans appeared, looking tired.

“Take her to the waiting room. Now.” The man said firmly, not evening sparing a glance at Charlie as she was ushered out of the room in a hurry. Her bag practically shoved into her arms as she was pulled away from the man’s office.
The dark haired girl was then shoved into a large waiting room filled with other people, all of whom sat talking quietly amongst themselves. A few sent curious glances her way as she was escorted into the room and told to sit. Charlie again complied before watching the women leave quickly, sending her a scared glance over her shoulder.

“I am the one who got hurt and you are frightened of me?” Charlie muttered, as she then looked back at the other people surrounding her, and sticking her finger into her mouth, sucking on it to dull the pain. “They didn’t even offer me a plaster.” She said bitterly. “Go figure.”

Frederick Salusbury - Atlantean Relief Centre, Stockholm, Sweden

October 31st, 2012

Freddie, as most people liked to call him, hobbled around on his crutches, gently stepping to see if he could walk yet. He was already strange to look at and indescribably Atlantean (actually, it was perfectly describable - he had long, floppy ears, small horns and strangely shaped arms with an odd amount of hair growing down them) so he had done his best to do this while hiding next to his car. After his recent 'transformation' though, when standing, Freddie had grown a foot or so, so he had to slouch when standing to hide behind his SUV.

"I can do it this time, I think," he said, putting his crutches next to his car and trying to stand up. One step... two step... three step... four step... yes, this must be how to walk! And then, when he thought his fifth step was perfect, his 'ankle' buckled and he fell to the cement. It was very hard to walk for Freddie, if it couldn't be guessed, as the bottom half of his body was no longer... human. No, he was a 'fawn' as they had told him. Half man, half goat. It was... tolerable but not exactly fun. "Aw poop."

Without the horns and the ears and the whole 'I am a goat' part of him, Freddie looked like your adorable, twenty-something year old guy (he was actually twenty-four). His hair, a soft brown, was a mixture of curvy, wavy and shaggy, matching the small beard he had growing on his chin. He had very soft features; friendly, round, brown eyes, a button nose and a gentle expression on his face. Now, when in public, instead of girls 'aww-ing' at him, they liked to keep away. Although they really couldn't see his feet (which would make anyone scream and run), one look at those ears and those small horns and parents would usher away their kids. It was a little sad but Freddie had learned to accept that he couldn't help it and should try to make the best of it. Like learning to walk. Because walking with hind legs was incredibly hard.

"Beep, beep!" rang his phone and Freddie quickly got to his knees and reached inside the car for it. He didn't say anything, only a few words were given to him before he realised what he had to do.

"She's here. But Lukyanenko has them. Be quick."

"Roger!" he said, and hung up the phone. He grabbed his crutches and quickly locked the car before hobbling off towards the centre. He could see the back end of a commotion happening, with someone ushering off two girls, one of them familiar (he had seen her face in the files he had been given). Being an extremely under-experienced, Freddie had no ideas. Well, maybe one...

"Hey!" he called out in Swedish. "Hey Mrs. Lukyanenko! Are you busy?"

Oakley North - Atlantean Relief Centre, London, England

October 31st, 2012

"Thank...you..." Oakley hesitantly took the gift from the man, quickly inspecting it in her hand. It was as if it was carved hastily from wood, like something you'd buy from the Native American gift shops she had seen once when she went to Tennessee with her father one Summer. It was a little tacky, but cute.

She felt a little obliged to give something to him but one, she had nothing to give and two, she felt it was perhaps a little creepy that he had approached her like this. Maybe just out of the goodness of his heart, but it was still a little weird. Never the less, she struck a conversation so she wouldn't seem too unappreciative.

"Is this your ability?" she motioned to her now a little wet wolf. Despite it being cold outside, it had already started to melt. What a shame, she had just started to like it.

Oakley turned as the door opened again, letting in another Atlantean (well, she pressumed anyway). The person leading her in didn't seem very polite about it, quickly shoving her inside before shooting her a look and leaving hastily. Nobody had been that awful Oakley, even if it wasn't that awful at all. What had she said for the people to be rude? Maybe a little sarcasm... she had to watch what she said, otherwise the people here might be mean. What about the people in the waiting room? How awful could these people be personality wise? If she took off her bandage, would they be supportive or would they be mean? Would they make fun of her?

"Ow," she said, grabbing her right bicep as she felt her armour twinge as she worried. She looked back Nathaniel with a little worry. "Oh, uh, sorry."

The Librarian - A Taxi Cab, Honolulu, Hawaii

October 30th, 2012

"You have a better idea?"

"Indeed!" he clapped his hands together excitedly. At least the boy hadn't jumped out of the car. That would be nasty. "But first off, introductions! They call me the Librarian but you can call me Jam-- wait, that's your name," he frowned and made a face, rearranging himself so his entire body was faced towards his guest. "Today, you can call me Henry!"

It seemed the car was now doing circuits of a four block radius. As they passed the beach, the Librarian turned his head to marvel at the view. The waves were stunning. If only he wasn't here on business. If this was a pleasure trip, he would have been sure to bring his surfboard and perhaps snorkling equipment. Maybe his yacht too. Whatever suited his fancy.

"I offer sanctuary to lost and found Atlanteans, no matter what your social status is. Mass murderer, arsonist, jay walker, it doesn't matter!" the beach disappeared into the distance and the Librarian directed his attention back to the boy. "Since you seem to think you're in a bit of a pickle, I can erase you off the Earth. Not literally. I would never kill you, haha. Just... paper wise. Not even the FBI could find you," he gave a laugh at his example. Honestly, the FBI were a bunch of hopeless men and women. He should have said the Royal Family but since the boy didn't know who they were (well, perhaps he did. The news had covered them quite a bit since Atlanteans had become public), mortals would have to do. "You could start a new life, I suppose. Usually in exchange, I ask for ancestry but because I already have yours, we can sort out some other sort of payment."

The car pulled over and almost suddenly, they were parked outside the Honolulu International Airport. So close that you could actually see inside the main entry. Like he had said, there were guards standing at the entrance, seemingly frisking every person that entered the building. As well as the giant guards, there were men standing next to them, holding scarily large looking assault rifles. The Librarian scoffed at the thought of guns. Any Atlantean knew that they were basically useless against any non-mortal with at least six months experience, provided their ability wasn't too useless. Of course, the boy didn't know this.

"So, you may exit and see how you fare against those men with the guns and their large friends or you could come with me and I could show you how lightning really works," the Librarian gave a warm smile as the boy's door opened. Hopefully, he wasn't as dumb as he looked.

Misha Vedernikov - Atlantean Relief Centre, Warsaw, Poland

October 31st, 2012

The girl spoke back in a strange language the first time she shouted at him, so Misha kept walking back towards the car. He had no need to run (the guards could be dealt with as easily as last time as there was dirt everywhere) but the girl seemed to be rather hesitant on riding sideways on Misha's very comfortable shoulders (he thought so anyways). She answered his second question in English, so perhaps he should start conversing.

"Oh, yes. I’m very comfortable on some stranger’s back who may or may not want to kill me. Also, if you wouldn’t mind tell me, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?"

He didn't drop the girl, instead kept taking his leisurely pace back to the car.

"I vill not kill you," he chuckled heartily. "No, I already killed my quota sis veek." He finished with another chuckle. Obviously, his jokes were very funny. "I am called Misha. Misha Vedernikov, from Russia. I come to escort you to my car sen I take you to my friends."

He had reached his car now. He turned around to check behind him, and it seemed the guards were still trying dig themselves out of the dirt. Good. He pulled the girl off his shoulders and shoved her in the car, pulling her seatbelt over her and closing the door, putting the child lock on so she had no ideas. Misha pulled himself in turned the ignition, pulling the door closed and locking the car.

"Indeed!" The fake taxi driver exclaimed, clasping his hands together enthusiastically. He then proceeded with what he referred to as introductions, although what it really was, was the man reiterating the fact that he knew exactly who James was, having had him under some sort of surveillance for some time (the extent of that time is up for question, and a question James would rather not have answered). So to James, the man who introduced himself as Henry was either showing off, or he was simply genuinely introducing himself out of civility, despite already knowing his name. Needless to say, James found the man odd, but also somewhat likable.

"I offer sanctuary to lost and found Atlanteans, no matter what your social status is. Mass murderer, arsonist, jay walker, it doesn't matter!" he said. James stared at the man intently, as if mulling over what he was saying. The way he described it, it sounded like he harbored criminals, and that he immediately put James into that category as well. Did he really give off the vibe right off the bat that he was a lawbreaker? Or maybe Henry was only mentioning the criminal part of it to make James feel like he could go with him without getting into trouble, especially after his incident in the convenience store. "You could start a new life, I suppose. Usually in exchange, I ask for ancestry but because I already have yours, we can sort out some other sort of payment." Again, more confirmation that he was being watched, quite intensively too, by the looks of it, information James really wished he didn't know. He figured sometimes the less he knew the better, but every little more he found out made him want to learn more, even if he knew he wouldn't like what he heard. As the car came to a stop at the airport, James could see the guards who seemed intent on stopping and frisking and searching every person that came through. James lowered his head some and pulled up his shirt over his tattoo, in the hopes that none of the men would look and notice.

"So, you may exit and see how you fare against those men with the guns and their large friends or you could come with me and I could show you how lightning really works."

James crossed his arms and sighed, looking back between the guards and the roof of the taxi. On the outside, it had appeared as though he was still mulling over the decision. On the inside, though, he had long made up his mind. This was exactly what James had wanted all along, ever since he found about his power, and even before that. This was the ticket out of here he had been waiting for.

"Alright, Henry. I'll go with you. But on one condition: Don't make me step foot in this f*cking city ever again."

__________________

A Legend once told me that roleplaying is about bringing people together and celebrating creative vision.
Paired with the ArtsyInfinite and the Spectacular Shak

“Why’d Pietr have to go and get himself blown up for their stupid cause! We needed him man!” Fragger groaned incessantly, ever since they had joined him in Paris, he had done nothing but moan about anything and everything.

“Shut up Jacques, all you do is groan an’ moan, it’s really starting to piss me off,” Smoko was the more well-built member of the group and easily towered over them all, but his nasally Australian twang made it a bit difficult for the rest whose first language wasn’t English to understand.

“This whole thing is messed up, these people are messed up, this crappy filled world is messed up!”

“Seriously, if you don’ shut yer mouth, I’ll steam fry you like the stuff Flashbang eats.” This managed to make Fragger’s mouth stop moving as he cast his eyes back at the small Asiatic girl that was the last to join their group.

Annoyed at the relentless noise that these two idiots seemed to make constantly, Hotaru decided to hold her tongue and think simply of the actions they were about to take. They had done this multiple times before, always the same routine, but they had yet to be caught. Making her move, Hotaru got up from her table, crossing the busy road, making a beeline for the two officers standing at the doors injecting people with the identifier. Jacques and Joey followed behind her, waiting for her move before they acted.

“Miss, please head to the back of the line,” the guard growled at her.

Gripping the bottom threads of her shirt, Hotaru rapidly brought her hands up over her head providing protection from the violent light that rapidly emanated from her body. People scream as they were dazed, the two officers brought to their knees and Hotaru felt the two boys push past her.

Now they found themselves in the main hall where people had turned in their chairs to see what the commotion was going on outside while doctors continued to scribble away furiously. It made Hotaru sad to know that some of these people were going to die, but it was made easier by the fact that it wasn’t going to be by her hands.

“Time for me to shine!” Fragger called out, garnering more attention as a thin sheen began to cover his body. Joey pulled Hotaru to the ground around Jacques’ feet where his ability would not trigger. A loud ‘woot’ erupted from his mouth as his outer shell exploded into tiny fragments that embedded in walls, slashed through curtains, and snuffed out lives.

Only a couple of Atlanteans had made it out through the ordeal with either the use of their ability of through sheer luck, nether less the three continued on, Hotaru brightening up the room dazing those left over as Joey headed towards the next room. People were crowded in here, many scared and worried about the explosion that had just happened. They all seemed to cower as Joey walked in making him feel more superior.

He basked in the attention as smoke began pouring from his pores, quickly filling the room up with noxious vapours; the guards by the door suffocating first as he targeted them. Letting himself go in the adrenaline rush of emotion, he continued to release the smoke from his body, turning the room into a death trap. He heard Fragger explode in the distance, the unmistakeable sound of glass followed.

They had one aim; to destroy the Atlantean Relief Centre in defiance of the Registration Act, any people killed were victims, martyr’s for their cause. And right now, Joey felt particularly righteous.

Katerina Lukyanenko – Stockholm, Sweden

October 31st, 2012

"Hey! Hey, Mrs. Lukyanenko! Are you busy?" Katerina heard the man calling out to her in Swedish. Turning around, she noticed where the voice had come from; a twenty-something year old man hobbling towards the three of them.

“Yes, mister, I am busy, what is it that you want?” She replied coldly, she still had work to do and the day was not over yet. There was probably an ever increasing pile on her desk now that she was away, sorting out the two girls now walking behind her.

“Sorry girls, I’ll see what this man wants before we return inside.” She said addressing them both before turning to the one scantily clad in some sort of Santa Claus outfit, “Aren’t you cold?” She wasn’t at all surprised by this girls dress, hell; she had been dealing with strange people with strange abilities all day.

The strange man, Misha, kept walking toward whatever his destination was, Delta assumed it was a car or some other kind of transportation. She remembered sitting in her rather small apartment on her less than comfy couch watching American TV Shows where a girl would get kidnapped. Delta swore she would never end up in that situation, she’d kick, bite, scratch, and hell, even die before a man took her prisoner. Yet somehow, here she was being held against her will by a man. The portrayal of women being weak creatures bugged her, another thing she swore she’d never be like, another thing was currently failing at. Curiosity tugged at her, this man had obviously wanted her and Delta wanted to know why he had gone through all this trouble for her.

"I vill not kill you," Misha laughed, Delta snorted in response. "No, I already killed my quota sis veek." He clearly thought that he was a world class comedian. "I am called Misha. Misha Vedernikov, from Russia. I come to escort you to my car sen I take you to my friends."

“You kill me and I snap your neck, Visha,” She tried a poor imitation of his accent just to mock him.

The next few moments she felt like a little children, no one treated her like this even as a little girl. Misha Vedernikov from Russia had put the brute in brute force as he placed her in the car and buckled her seatbelt. This made Delta angry, did he think of her as a children? An unfortunate fact was that Delta wasn't very good at holding in her anger. Did she not have a choice in the matter?

"Vhat is your name, little girl?" Misha asked.

The rage swelled inside as her hands crystallized, all of this hidden by her long-sleeved jacket and gloves, she then swung her hands at the car window. The glass shattered underneath the pressure and some of it landed back on Delta's lap. Misha really should've handcuffed her, but did he know what her Atlantean power was? One of her highest priorities was to keep it a secret and so far she had. How did he know she was at the Atlantean Relief Centre, had she been bugged? No, someone must have tracked her purchases such as the plane ticket and assumed she would go to the Centre. If that was the case it meant they had already known she was Atlantean and the only person who remotely had an idea was Nathan. This guy must have friends in high places and now she wanted to meet them. Shouldn't he have known her name or was this a pathetic attempt at conversation?

"Bite me," Delta settled into the backseat, was she really going to go through with this?

Misha Vedernikov - Atlantean Relief Centre, Warsaw, Poland

October 31st, 2012

"My name is Misha, not Visha," he said, pulling the car out into the street, unphased by the now broken window, "and how can you break my neck vhen you are dead? Silly girl."

The streets of Poland were rather mild, though it was a Wednesday. People were either at work or still taking 'sick days' to recover from the shock from either being Atlantean or being related to or a friend of one. Misha wasn't entirely sure where they were going yet since he wasn't sure if Annie knew he had the girl or if she approved of his methods. So, at the moment, he would have to stick with driving around for a little bit.

"I have question for you," he looked out the window and noticed a fast food chain of some sort. His stomach rumbled in response. He had already eaten two breakfasts, was it already first lunch time? "Two questions. Vhy did you go to Centre if you vere going to run avay? And are you hungry, little girl?"

Frederick Salusbury - Atlantean Relief Centre, Stockholm, Sweden

October 31st, 2012

"Yes, mister, I am busy, what is it that you want?"

What did he want? What did he want... Well, what he was sent here to do was to take one of those girls. What he wanted to do was be at home with real feet and twist and curl them in socks instead of funky goat hooves where he felt like he only had two toes. Or two really big toenails. Okay, well, what did he say to this person, who was one of the heads of the ARF? Did he confront her? In English? He didn't know much Swedish, he was an English professor! Argh! Why was he sent here?!

"Um, hello, but... I, uh... um... where is the bathroom?" was literally the first phrase that came into his head. Why hadn't he learned more than this? He really needed some kind of back up. "Yes... um... I have trouble walking."

The Librarian - A Taxi Cab, Honolulu, Hawaii

October 30th, 2012

"Alright, Henry. I'll go with you. But on one condition: Don't make me step foot in this ****ing city ever again."

"I can do that for you. I'll tick Hawaii off our Christmas fun holiday trip," he gave a laugh and when James didn't, he gave him a sympathetic smile. "That was a joke. Anyway, if you close the door, we'll be off. There's one place we must stop before I take you to my home. I have to pick up my daughter from school."

James complied and as soon as the door shut, there was a loud snap, as if many people had clapped their hands together at the same time, and suddenly, they weren't in Kansas anymore. They weren't in Hawaii anyore either. In fact, they had teleported directly to London, outside the square which housed the Relief Centre. When the Librarian stepped out of his car, it was no longer the yellow taxi cab and he was no longer wearing the shabby clothes of a dirty and dingy driver, but was standing next to an very nice looking Volvo and was dressed smartly, as if he had just come from a dinner party somewhere.

"Do you like action movies, James? The ones with bright lights, smoke machines and explosions?" he gave his guest a coy smile. "I've been in a few movies myself. Did you see Die Hard 2? I was the guy flying the plane. It was a real experience!"

??? - Atlantean Relief Centre, London, England

October 31st, 2012

"Name?"

"Adeline Russo."

"And your ability?" She put her hands face up on the table, clapped them together and created a string that greatly resembled a spider's web.

"Thank-you. You can proceed to the next room."

The time was finally right. She didn't waste any time finding her target and approaching him immediately. He was sitting next to a young girl, but she rudely interrupted whatever they had between them.

"Are you Nathaniel Calaway?" the girl with the dark hair and gothic look said, as smoke began to fill the room and explosions started going off. This would not deter her from her duty.

"My name is Misha, not Visha," For some reason he didn't he comment on the broken window, how odd, "and how can you break my neck vhen you are dead? Silly girl."

“How vill you kill me vhen you have a broken neck, Visha?” Delta folded her arms and shifted in her seat.

The view from the broken window wasn’t very nice, she didn’t really like coming to the capitol it was a dull place. Most of it was tall buildings, taller buildings, and restaurants that had bright signs to attract tourists. The breeze blew the beads at the end of her braids, which caused them to make sounds. She hadn’t had time to change the coloring; red in the front, orange in the middle, and yellow in the back was the way it was currently was. Delta smoothed her hair down, and felt her face for her several piercings. Her golden hoop in her right eyebrow, her silver hoop on the right corner of her lip, and the small butterfly nose ring were all still intact.

"I have question for you," Misha stated, he had a lot of questions. Did his friends not share information with him? Or had she just assumed wrongly? She still needed some information from this guy. "Two questions. Vhy did you go to Centre if you vere going to run avay? And are you hungry, little girl?"

“Do you just kidnap random individuals? How come you don’t already know my name? Do you know anything about me?” Delta instead posed her own questions because now she couldn’t wait to have her questions answered. Her stomach grumbled, maybe she was hungry after all, “We should get something to eat.”

One clap. One single clap of the hands was all it took, and James found himself in a location he no longer recognized. He looked out the window from inside the cab, still unwilling, or perhaps unable, to get out of the car, mainly due to shock at what happened. As he observed the streets and the people moving in them, a few thoughts rushed through his mind, some of them about his whereabouts, but most of them centering around Henry. The most obvious burning question was just who the hell did he get in a cab with? Earlier, he was able to control the direction of the car without even touching it. Now, he moved them all the way to what James soon found out was in England somewhere because of a passerby displaying his accent as he talked on his cell phone. (though he supposed it would be called mobile here). The initial thought that ran through James's mind was that the man's ability revolved around cars, and perhaps he could extend his ability to do much with them. But as James stepped out of the vehicle and saw that Henry was now in a completely different set of clothes, he knew that wasn't it. James had heard some news about Atlanteans before during his three weeks of discovery. The main thing being that each Atlantean had a single ability. However, with James, it appeared not to be the case. At least, that's what it seemed like for now. Whoever this man really was, James was sure of one thing, he was a pretty big f*cking deal.

"Uh, yea sure." James said distractedly to him about his action movie question. He had a lot more other questions on his mind. "Hey, just where the f*ck are we, exactly? And how the hell did we ge-" Mid-sentence, James was suddenly cut short by a intense, brilliant light that covered the street. James closed his eyes and covered his face with his arm, wondering what just happened. "F*CK!" James shouted, his eyes blurry and stinging from the light. It stayed on strong for a few more moments, before it slowly began to fade As the light receded, James could see that the traces of its origin apparently coming from the building next to them. "What the...what was that?!" James demanded of Henry, turning to him, expecting him to have that answer. He wasn't certain if the light had originated from something of Henry's doing, but James felt for some reason that the man was involved somehow. He had no other basis to go by at the moment.

Before the man could answer, though, James turned back to the building by the sounds of screams of people vacating from the building. They came out panicking, some bleeding from parts of their body. All determined to get as far away from the place as possible. This obviously caused people on the street to also panic, some trying to move away from the area, others dialing on their phones, either for the police or for other source. Cars were either stopped looking at what had happened or speeding away. James simply stood there, wondering what he should do. His heart was beating like a drum and his breath was short, as if he had just ran a few miles. Adrenaline was flowing through his body, fear, panic and confusion among the highest emotions running through his mind at the moment. Yet for some reason, it wasn't as visible to him on the outside as he would have expected. Though James has had no opportunity before in his life to be in a situation like this, he expected that his body would react a bit differently, maybe tremble, or show some sign of fear. James lifted one of his hands from his side and looked over it. No signs of shaking, not even a slight tremble. It was steady. What did it mean? Maybe it was the other set of emotions running through his body, counting any fear or anxiety or panic he may have had.

Exhilaration. Fascination. Enthrallment. James always did find that that which he found exciting was unusual. Calm, tranquil environments like his hometown was what he wanted to escape from. And whether Henry knew it or not, he had brought him right where he had wanted to. Well, not exactly right where. He wanted to get just a bit closer...

Not waiting to hear anything from Henry, James took off for the building. While many people flooded to escape outside, James was one of the few trying to get inside. He had no idea what to expect, and he didn't care. Life was nothing without a bit of chaos to making it interesting.

__________________

A Legend once told me that roleplaying is about bringing people together and celebrating creative vision.
Paired with the ArtsyInfinite and the Spectacular Shak

The PokéCommunity

Meta

Pokémon characters and images belong to The Pokémon Company International and Nintendo. This website is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK, or The Pokémon Company International. We just love Pokémon.